Ranked-choice voting bans are advancing
by Harry Roth
The movement to ban ranked-choice voting (RCV) is picking up speed across the country. Since 2022, eleven states have officially prohibited RCV, and the trend continues. So far this year, eight states have introduced bills to ban the system, with three of those bills already passing at least one legislative chamber.
The Kansas state Senate passed a ban earlier this month, setting the stage for a hearing in the House of Representatives next week. A similar bill in Wyoming passed in the House of Representatives and is now under consideration in the state Senate.
State legislators are realizing that banning RCV not only strengthens election integrity but also resonates with voters. Some states, such as Missouri, have even amended their constitutions to cement their ban into law.
Critics often claim that opposition to ranked-choice voting is purely partisan, pointing out that all eleven states that have banned it so far are Republican-led. However, the issue is gaining traction beyond red states. In Minnesota, an RCV ban is under consideration, and in Maine—one of only two states that currently use the system—a repeal bill is actively moving through the legislature.
Maine’s experience with RCV has been anything but smooth. After outside groups poured money into the state to push the system through a ballot initiative, chaos followed. In 2017, Maine’s Supreme Judicial Court unanimously ruled that RCV was unconstitutional for state general elections. Since then, election delays and ballot errors have become routine, fueling efforts to roll back the system.
Just two years ago, it was common to find Republicans supporting ranked-choice voting. Today, it’s like finding a needle in a haystack. And many prominent Democrats have come out against RCV as well. Washington state’s Democratic Secretary of State Steve Hobbs had this regarding his opposition to ranked-choice voting:
"I'm completely against ranked-choice voting; I used to be for it. But when you occupy this office, you have to take a step back and look at how elections affect everyone."
More states are expected to take action this year, including several that came close to banning RCV last year. After dealing with the reality of an unreliable, convoluted, and unfair system, voters and legislators are stepping up to the plate to save their state from ranked-choice voting.