In the most recent election in Port Chester, NY, a federal judge allowed each local voter to cast up to 6 votes. This was a system put into place to help Latino candidates: this is a New York City suburb with a 50% Latino population (though only 25% of the local voters) that has never elected a Latino trustee. With the new system, the election results did change: a Peruvian immigrant came in fourth in the voting and will become a trustee (and the first black trustee was also elected).

It remains to be seen if this method will spread to other suburbs. There are many suburban municipalities that now have large minority populations and likely a good number that also have not elected many minority local officials.

Some relevant material from The Washington Post:

“The 2010 Census is expected to show large increases in Latino populations and lawsuits alleging discrimination are likely to increase, said Rob Richie, executive director of FairVote, a nonprofit election research and reform group.

“The country’s been changing in a lot of places, with minority growth in exurbs and commuter cities, and there will be a realization that those minorities can’t elect candidates of choice,” Richie said.

That will leave minority groups, federal prosecutors and municipalities looking for ways to keep elections from violating the federal Voting Rights Act, which protects minorities’ constitutional right to equal protection under the law.

In Port Chester, trustees had been elected two at a time every two years, with conventional at-large voting. Most voters were white, and there were always six white trustees even though Hispanics made up half the population and nearly a quarter of the voters. Judge Stephen Robinson concluded the system violated U.S. law by diluting Hispanics’ votes.”

An innovative method – and perhaps one that will continue to be in the courts in the years to come.