How to Stop Ranked-Choice Voting

States can act to stop ranked-choice voting. The legislature and governor can enact a state law to prohibit the use of RCV in any state or local elections. Florida, Tennessee, Idaho, South Dakota, Montana, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Missouri, Wyoming, West Virginia, and Kansas have already done this, and many other states are considering such protections.

In states without such a law, voters and officials should resist any attempt to enact RCV. This is often done at the local level as a way to normalize the use of RCV before pushing to expand it. Yet even in small elections, the complex process has led to serious election mistakes.

Even where RCV has been used, voters can demand its repeal. That has happened in Aspen, Colorado, and in one of the largest counties in Washington state. Repeal movements are active and gaining ground in other jurisdictions as well.