Ranked Choice Voting Info

Risks & Realities

Ranked Choice Voting

What Is Ranked Choice Voting (RCV)?

Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) is being promoted as a solution to political polarization and partisanship in the U.S.

However, this system, which allows voters to rank candidates by preference instead of simply casting a ballot for their chosen candidate, undermines the core principles of our electoral process.

The dangers of RCV are significant and should concern all who value the integrity of elections.

Voter Ranking System

Voters rank candidates by preference (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.), not just a single choice.

Elimination Process

If no candidate gets 50%, the lowest-ranked candidate is eliminated, and votes are redistributed based on voters' next preferences until one candidate wins.

Courtesy of thefga.org (Dated October 31, 2023)

Where is RCV on the November 5, 2024 Ballot?

Courtesy of Ballotpedia (Dated October 25, 2024)

Problems with Ranked Choice Voting

Disenfranchisement Through Ballot Exhaustion

140,000+ ballots discarded in the 2021 NYC mayoral race due to incomplete rankings.

Voter Confusion & Complexity

8% lower voter turnout in RCV jurisdictions during off-cycle elections compared to non-RCV areas.

Longer Voting & Counting Times

30,000+ man-hours to count 70,000 ballots in Minneapolis' 2009 mayoral race.

Alameda County (2022)

A school board election was incorrectly certified due to RCV tabulation errors.

Maine (2018)

A Republican candidate led the first round but lost due to vote redistribution, causing backlash.

The Mayoral race took 8 rounds of vote counting over 2 weeks to declare a winner from the ten candidates. By the time counting concluded, over 140,000 ballots had been discarded because voters didn't rank all the candidates, a phenomenon known as “ballot exhaustion.”

Notable Incidents

62%

Key Statistic

62% of voters are concerned that cheating will affect the outcome of the 2024 election (Rasmussen Reports).

Multiple Votes

Perceived Inequity

Voters whose top choices are eliminated may feel they’re casting multiple votes, while others only vote once.

Manipulation

Increased Risk of Manipulation

RCV complexity allows for strategic voting and manipulation by politically savvy voters, distorting true election outcomes.

Recipe for Disaster

"...ranked choice voting is a recipe for disaster, creating a system where candidates can win with less than majority support, undermining the democratic process."

Hans von Spakovsky, Senior Legal Fellow at the Heritage Foundation

Suppressed Voter Turnout

"Ranked-choice ballots have suppressed voter turnout, especially among those segments of the electorate that are already least likely to participate."

Vignesh Ganapathy, Policy Director, American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas

Threatens Election Integrity

"...ranked-choice voting threatens the integrity of our elections by complicating the process and confusing voters. It opens the door to election manipulation and undermines trust in the results."

Trent England, Save Our States Founder

Think That It Looks Great on Paper? RCV Is a Disaster in Practice.

135,000 Erroneous Ballots

New York City's 2021 Mayoral Democratic Primary took 15 days to reach a conclusion, with the two final candidates only separated by slightly more than one percent of the vote. A contributing factors to the delay was the erroneous inclusion of 135,000 test ballots.

7% of Voters Silenced

Maine's 2nd Congressional District 2018 Democratic Primary had 126,139 votes cast, but only 117,250 votes counted towards the final round. This means that approximately 7% of voters - nearly 9,000 people - had their voices silenced by ballot exhaustion.

A Few Examples of Governments That Passed RCV Only to Later Repeal It

Aspen, Colorado

RCV was used in the 2009 elections, but Aspen voters repealed it in 2010, with 65% of voters opting to return to the traditional voting system. Critics argued that the system was confusing and that it led to unexpected results.

North Carolina

In 2010, RCV was used for judicial races. However, the state repealed the system in 2013 after complaints of confusion and low public awareness of how the process worked.

Burlington, Vermont

RCV was introduced for the 2006 mayoral election. However, following the 2009 election, where a candidate with fewer first-choice votes won due to the ranked-choice process, voters repealed the system in 2010 by a vote of 52% to 48%.

Ann Arbor, Michigan

RCV was used for the 1975 mayoral election, but after a controversial election outcome, it was repealed in 1976. The losing candidate in that election received more first-choice votes but lost after the redistribution of votes, leading to dissatisfaction.

Longer Wait Times to Vote

Implementing RCV can lead to more complex and lengthy voting processes, causing longer wait times at polling stations. The need to rank multiple candidates (versus choosing a single candidate) extends the amount of time required to vote. Extrapolate that by the number of votes in an election and the results are impactful. This not only frustrates voters but also increases the risk of errors during the voting process.

Correlation with Lower Voter Turnout

Studies show that RCV often correlates with lower voter turnout. The complexity and confusion surrounding the ranking process can discourage participation, particularly among less informed or first-time voters.

Greater Onus on Poll Workers

RCV places an additional burden on election officials and poll workers, increasing the likelihood of errors. For instance, during the 2009 Minneapolis mayoral race, the election office estimated that it would take 37 eight-hour shifts with 102 election officials to tabulate the votes for just 70,000 voters. The total vote tabulation was estimated to require over 30,000 man-hours.

Deterioration of Trust in the Election System

Due to the increased likelihood for mismanagement and vulnerability for fraud presented by RCV, the following are major concerns that could lead to voters losing even more trust in the electoral process.

Greater Chance of Manipulation

The complexity of RCV could make elections more susceptible to manipulation by those who understand the intricacies better than the average voter. The increased complexity might allow politically savvy actors to exploit voter confusion, manipulate rankings, or strategically encourage the ranking of certain candidates in ways that benefit their preferred outcomes. This complexity could also result in unintended consequences where the eventual winner may not reflect the true will of the majority, but rather the strategic maneuvering of votes by those well-versed in the RCV process. This, in turn, risks undermining public trust in the fairness and transparency of the electoral system.

Some Voters Get Essentially Cast More Than One Ballot

With RCV, some voters are effectively casting multiple ballots, while others are only voting once. This perception arises because RCV allows voters to rank multiple candidates, and their second or third choices can come into play if their top choice is eliminated. This complexity and lack of transparency can lead to increased feelings of disenfranchisement, further eroding trust in the electoral process as a whole.

When informed of these issues the majority of voters surveyed oppose RCV.

It's Time To Reject RCV

Our elections need to protect the voice of every voter. Share this critical information about the dangers of Ranked Choice Voting with your friends, family, and community. Help us safeguard the integrity of our election system!