Seattle Passes the Vote For Ranked Choice Voting

This article by Nicole McMilan in The Daily cites RepresentWomen's 2022 100 Cities Report.

Ranked choice voting works to give individual votes more weight by preventing vote-splitting — an electoral phenomenon where votes for candidates with similar ideologies are spread out, thus reducing their chances of winning the election. Many advocating for this system claim it increases voter representation due to voters’ ability to have more flexibility and confidence with this system.

“You have more expression, more control over your vote,” Chapman said. “You get more voice.”

Research has also found that ranked choice voting creates better outcomes for women and people of color. A 2022 study by Represent Women found that women made up 47% of mayors elected through ranked choice vote elections, but only 31% of mayors in the 100 largest U.S. cities. In addition, a study by FairVote found that the 2021 New York City elections, which used ranked choice voting for the first time, led to the most diverse election outcome in history and increased voter turnout to levels the city hadn’t seen in 30 years.

Due to the more representative outcomes that ranked choice voting delivers, the system is gaining popularity across the country as more regions introduce it to their election process. Ranked choice voting is used statewide in Alaska and Maine, as well as in large city elections such as New York City and San Francisco.

Read the complete article here.

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