Bad news abounds for RCV
by Harry Roth
What a year it’s been for ranked-choice voting. Two states have banned it, one state ended its pilot program, a statewide ballot proposal failed to qualify, a city council rejected it, and a state supreme court struck down an expansion bill. And just think: we’re only four months into 2026.
Indiana and Ohio became the first two states to ban the practice this year, becoming the 18th and 19th to do so overall. Ohio’sban was first introduced in 2023, which died in a House committee after passing the Senate. Fortunately, the legislature was able to pass it through both chambers on its second attempt. The bipartisan bill was signed into law by Governor DeWine in February.
Indiana quickly enacted a similar ban only two months after introducing it, demonstrating the legislature’s commitment to preventing an election scheme with a track record of failure from gaining a foothold in the state.
That failure was on full display in Utah while its RCV pilot program was still active. Before sunsetting at the beginning of this year, Utah had a pilot program that allowed municipalities to implement the system in local elections. More than 20 cities utilized it at the height of the program. After experiencing the struggles associated with the system firsthand, multiple cities dropped out before the program ended this year.
Over in Michigan, Rank MI Vote’s RCV ballot proposal fell 200,000 signatures short of qualifying for the ballot. In a twisted way, RCV donors can find a silver lining: at least they won’t have to spend millions on another failed ballot measure like the ones voters rejected in six states in 2024.
Earlier this month, the Albuquerque, New Mexico, City Council rejected RCV by a 6–3 vote. The bill’s author claimed switching from the current runoff system would save money but failed to account for the costs of system upgrades, staff retraining, and continuous public education campaigns.
Finally, an effort to expand RCV in Maine was struck down this month when the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled LD1666 unconstitutional. This swift action ensures that RCV will remain isolated in federal elections and state primaries until the system is eventually repealed.
Unfortunately for groups like FairVote and other RCV proponents, a bad year for RCV could get even worse if Alaskans vote to repeal the system in November. If they do, 2026 will, without a doubt, go down as the worst year on record for the RCV movement.