- Ranked Choice Voting
- Details about Ranked Choice Voting
- Where Ranked Choice Voting is Used
Where Ranked Choice Voting is Used
As of April 2022, 55 cities, counties, and states are projected to use RCV for all voters in their next election. These jurisdictions are home to approximately 10 million voters, and include 2 states, 1 county, and 52 cities. Military and overseas voters cast RCV ballots in federal runoff elections in 6 states.
43 jurisdictions used RCV in their most recent elections.
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Using Ranked Choice Voting (25 jurisdictions outside of Utah):
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Alaska (state): Adopted in 2020 for all state and federal general elections and in the 2024 Presidential election. All uses except presidential election in "Top Four" form, with open ballot primary advancing 4 candidates to the general election with RCV. First being used in special U.S. House election in August 2022, then all offices in November 2022.
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Maine (state): Adopted in 2016 and first used in 2018 for all state and federal primary elections and all general elections for Congress. Extended to apply to the general election for president beginning in 2020 and presidential primary elections beginning in 2024. Elections every even year.
- Arden, Delaware: In use for the 7-seat, citywide elections to the board of assessors since the early twentieth century in RCV's multi-winner, proportional form.
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Basalt, Colorado: Adopted in 2002 for mayoral races only with 3 or more candidates. First used in April 2020. Mayoral elections are every 4 years.
- Benton County, Oregon: Adopted in 2016 for general elections for the partisan offices of county offices of commissioner (at-large, numbered post) and sheriff. First used in November 2020, with staggered elections every 2 years. (Not used in primary elections.)
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Berkeley, California: Adopted in 2004 and has been used since 2010 to elect the mayor, city council and city auditor (all single-winner contests). Staggered elections every 2 years.
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Bloomington, Minnesota: Adopted by voters in 2020 to amend the city charter to elect the mayor and city council (local districts, 1 at-large seat). First city council elections with RCV were in 2021. Staggered elections every 2 years.
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Cambridge, Massachusetts: Adopted in 1941 in RCV's multi-winner, proportional form. Used to elect nine seats to the city council and six seats to the school board, both at-large. Elections every 2 years.
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Carbondale, Colorado: Adopted in 2002 for mayoral races with three or more candidates. Not yet used as of 2021.
- Easthampton, Massachusetts: Adopted in 2019 for mayoral and all single-seat city council elections. Used RCV for mayor in 2021. Staggered elections every 2 years.
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Eastpointe, Michigan: Adopted multi-winner, proportional form of RCV for 2019 and 2021 city council elections (at-large for 2 seats) to resolve a federal Voting Rights Act lawsuit. Also used RCV in 2020 to fill a city council vacancy. Staggered elections every 2 years.
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Eureka, California: Adopted in 2020 and to be used for mayor and city council elections beginning in November 2022.
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Las Cruces, New Mexico: Adopted by the city council in 2018 and RCV used since 2019 for all municipal elections, including mayor and council. Staggered elections every 2 years.
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Minneapolis, Minnesota: Adopted in 2006 and used since 2009, in elections for 22 city offices, including mayor and city council, and some park board and board of estimate seats with proportional form of RCV in multi-winner districts. Elections every 4 years.
- Minnetonka, Minnesota: Adopted in 2020 to be used to elect the mayor and city council. First city council elections with RCV held in 2021 (at-large by numbered post.) Staggered elections every 2 years.
- New York City: Adopted in 2019 and used in all city primary elections for mayor, citywide offices, borough presidents and city council, starting in 2021 (all single-winner contests). Next city council primaries in 2023. Elections otherwise every 4 years. RCV also used in special elections for city offices in a single round of voting without a primary.
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Oakland, California: Adopted in 2006 and used since 2010 for a total of 18 single-winner city offices, including mayor and city council. Staggered elections every 2 years. Also used for vacancy elections.
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Portland, Maine: Adopted in 2010 and used since 2011 for electing mayor. Expanded in 2020 to also apply to city council and school board. Used to elect charter commission in 2021, including 4 citywide seats with sequential RCV.
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San Francisco, California: Adopted in 2002 and used since 2004 to elect the mayor, city attorney, Board of Supervisors and five additional citywide executive offices (all single-winner contests). Staggered elections, with elections 3 out of every 4 years. Also used for vacancy elections.
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San Leandro, California: Adopted as option in 2000 charter amendment and used since 2010 to elect the mayor and city council (council elected at-large, by numbered post). Staggered elections every 2 years.
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Santa Fe, New Mexico: Adopted in 2008 and used since March 2018 for mayor, city council, and municipal judge all single-winner contests). Staggered elections with 3-year terms.
- St. Louis Park, Minnesota: Adopted in 2018 and used since 2019 for mayor and city council races (at-large by numbered post). Staggered elections every 2 years.
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St. Paul, Minnesota: Adopted in 2009 and used since 2011 to elect the mayor and city council (all single-winner contests). Staggered elections every 2 years.
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Takoma Park, Maryland: Adopted in 2006 and used since 2007 in all elections for mayor and city council (all single-winner contests). Elections every 2 years. Also used for vacancy elections.
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Telluride, Colorado: Adopted in 2008 for mayoral elections in 2011, 2015 and 2019.
To see how RCV is working, visit FairVote's Data on RCV resource page.
Utah Cities Using RCV in 2021 (20 cities)
23 Utah cities and towns opted into a municipal pilot program authorized by the state legislature, including two that used RCV in their previous elections in 2019. These municipalities used RCV in contested elections for city council and/or mayor in 2021. At-large seats are elected with the winner-take-all, sequential form of multi-winner RCV.
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Bluffdale, Utah: Used multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Cottonwood Heights, Utah: Used RCV for mayor and 2 district city council seats in 2021.
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Draper, Utah: Used multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Elk Ridge, Utah: Used RCV for mayor in 2021.
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Genola, Utah: Used multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Heber, Utah: Used RCV for mayor and multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Lehi, Utah: Used multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Magna Township, Utah: Used RCV for 1 district city council seat in 2021.
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Midvale, Utah: Used RCV for mayor in 2021.
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Millcreek, Utah: Used RCV for 2 district city council seats in 2021.
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Moab, Utah: Used RCV for mayor and multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Newton, Utah: Used multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Nibley, Utah: Used RCV for mayor and multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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River Heights, Utah: Used multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Salt Lake City, Utah: Used RCV for 5 district city council seats in 2021.
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Sandy, Utah: Used RCV for mayor and three city council seats (one at-large and two district seats) in 2021.
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South Salt Lake, Utah: Used RCV for mayor in 2021.
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Springville, Utah: Used RCV for mayor and a single city council seat, and multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
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Vineyard, Utah: Used RCV for mayor in 2021 and used multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large seats in 2019.
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Woodland Hills, Utah: Used RCV for mayor and multi-winner sequential RCV for 2 at-large city council seats in 2021.
The following Utah cities opted into the 2021 RCV pilot program but did not have enough candidates on the ballot to use RCV.
- Goshen, Utah
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Payson, Utah:
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Riverton, Utah:
Two Utah cities RCV in 2019, with city councils in both cities voting to use it again in 2021
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Payson, Utah: Used sequential RCV for three at-large city council seats in 2019.
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Vineyard, Utah: Used sequential RCV for two at-large city council seats in 2019.
Upcoming implementations of RCV (7 jurisdictions):
- Albany, California: Adopted in 2020, with proportional ranked choice voting projected to first be used for city council and school board in November 2022.
- Amherst, Massachusetts: Adopted charter in 2018 with ranked choice voting and passing implementation statute before projected first use in November 2023.
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Boulder, Colorado: Adopted by voters in 2020 for elections for mayor, starting in November 2023.
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Broomfield, Colorado: Adopted by voters in 2021 for elections for mayor and city council, starting in November 2023.
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Burlington, Vermont: Adopted by voters in 2021 for city council; to begin in March 2023 (timing contingent on state legislative approval).
- Palm Desert, California: Adopted January 2020 to be used for city council elections; projected to start in November 2022 as part of a California Voting Rights Act settlement. (One district is elected in a single-winner election, with the rest of the council electing citywide with proportional RCV.)
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Westbrook, Maine: Adopted by voters in 2021 for elections for mayor and city council, starting in November 2023.
Presidential Nominations (Democratic party primaries and caucuses*):
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Alaska: All voters in Democratic party-run primary in April 2020
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Nevada: All early voters in Democratic caucuses in February 2020
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Hawaii: All voters in Democratic party-run primary in May 2020
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Kansas: All voters in Democratic party-run primary in May 2020
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Maine: All voters in all presidential primaries, starting in 2024
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Wyoming: All voters in Democratic party-run primary in April 2020
* Democratic state parties conduct an RCV tally until all candidates exceeded 15% of the vote statewide and in each congressional district, after which delegates were allocated proportionally. Party decisions about 2024 will be made closer to that date.
Party Elections/Conventions:
The following is a partial list. Minor parties in the United States also frequently use ranked choice voting for internal contests.
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Delaware Democratic Party: The Delaware Democratic Party used RCV to choose delegates to the Democratic Party national convention, but only in cases where there was a tie because they couldn’t do an in-person second ballot. Votes had to be tallied by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. *Source
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Democrats Abroad Convention: The Democrats Abroad Convention used RCV to choose delegates to the Democratic Party national convention on May 16, 2020 *Source
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Indiana Republican Party: The Indiana Republican Party used RCV to nominate its candidate for Attorney General at their virtual convention on July 10, 2020. *Source and *Source
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Minnesota Democratic Party: The Minnesota Democratic Party used RCV for endorsements for various offices during the State Convention balloting period from May 26 through May 31, 2020 *Source
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Nebraska Democratic Party: The Nebraska Democratic Party used RCV to choose State Party Officers, County Party Officers in counties with more than 50,000 people. County party convention dates varied; the deadline to submit ballots for the state convention was June 9, 2020 *Source
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New Mexico Democratic Party: The New Mexico Democratic Party used RCV to choose District-Level delegates to the DNC on June 13, 2020 *Source
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Oklahoma Democratic Party: The Oklahoma Democratic Party used RCV to choose Pledged Party Leader and Elected Official (PLEO) Delegates; district-level delegates; At-Large Delegates and Alternates on June 6, 2020 *Source
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Utah Republican Party: RCV was used by the Utah Republican Party to determine which candidates advanced directly to the general election and which advanced to the June 30 primary. A candidate who received at least 60 percent support in the final round of the RCV tally advanced alone to the primary; if not, the final two candidates advanced to the primary. Candidates for Congress, Governor, Attorney General, state school board, and state legislature were subject to these rules. This occurred on April 25, 2020 *Source
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Utah Democratic Party: RCV was used by the Utah Democratic Party to elect party officers and determine which candidates advanced to the June 30 primary.. Races for U.S. House, Governor, National Committee officers, and Party Secretary used RCV. This occurred on April 25, 2020. *Source
- Virginia Republican Party: The Republican Party of Virginia in 2020 used RCV at several congressional district conventions and to select its party chair at its state convention. In May 2021, the party used RCV at an unassembled state convention with more than 30,000 delegates to choose its nominees for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general. *Source
Advisory / Option for Future Elections:
- Ann Arbor, Michigan: Adopted by voters in 2021. Awaiting implementation readiness.
- Davis, California: Approved by voters in 2006 as an advisory measure for proportional, multi-winner form of RCV. Awaiting state law change for general law cities.
- Ferndale, Michigan: Adopted by voters in 2004. Awaiting implementation readiness.
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Memphis, Tennessee: Adopted by voters in 2008, and approved again by voters in 2018. Awaiting implementation readiness.
- Santa Clara County, California: Adopted by voters in 1998 as an option for county elections.
- Sarasota, Florida: Adopted by voters in 2007, awaiting implementation readiness.
- Vancouver, Washington: Adopted by voters in 1999 as an option in the charter.
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Utah cities: A local options bill was passed in 201. In 2019, two cities opted in. In 2021, 23 cities opted in. More cities could choose to use RCV in future elections, which take place every two years.
- Virginia cities: Local options bill passed in 2020. Cities can opt in, starting in 2022. (State and county arms of both the Republican and Democratic Party used RCV for some party nomination contests in 2020 and 2021.)
RCV Ballots for Overseas Voters in Runoffs
- Arkansas: Adopted in 2005. First used 2006 and extended to all local runoffs in 2007.
- Alabama: By agreement with a federal court, used in a special election for U.S. House, 2013; became law for all federal primary runoffs in 2015.
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Georgia: Adopted in 2021 and first used in 2022 for military and overseas voters in federal and state runoffs.
- Louisiana: Adopted and used since the 1990s for state and federal general election runoffs; also includes out-of-state military voters.
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Mississippi: Starting 2014, after agreement in federal consent decree to use RCV ballots in federal runoffs.
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South Carolina: Adopted and first used in 2006 for state and federal runoffs.
- Springfield, Illinois: Adopted in 2007 and first used in 2011.
RCV on Campus
As of April 2022, more than 90 colleges and universities in the United States use ranked choice voting to elect some or all student government positions - many in its proportional form as well as its single winner form. That means that over a million students across the country every year are empowered with more choice and fairer representation in electing student leaders.
Full list of colleges and universities using RCV for student government elections
Private Organizations and Corporations
Recommended by Robert’s Rules of Order for organizational elections conducted by mail, ranked choice voting is used widely among private associations organizations. Probably its highest-profile use by a private organization is in awarding of the Oscars by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which uses the proportional, multi-winner form of RCV to nominate all major awards categories and the single winner form of RCV for selecting Best Picture. RCV in its proportional form is commonly used by British organizations as well.
Too many organizations use RCV for a comprehensive list. Here is a partial list of private organizations and corporations using RCV.
Public Elections Internationally
Ranked choice voting is used by every voter in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, Malta, Northern Ireland, and Scotland, often with the multi-winner, proportional form of it (“single transferable vote”). RCV also is used in party-run elections and local elections throughout the English-speaking world, including national leaders of the major conservative parties in Canada and New Zealand and major liberal parties in Canada and the United Kingdom.
Examples of uses of RCV include: Australia (federal House of Representatives and nearly all state and local government elections and a multi-winner form of it for senate elections); Ireland (for president and multi-winner form for parliament and many local elections); Malta (multi-winner form for parliament); New Zealand (for mayor and city council in major cities such as Wellington, along with health board elections); Northern Ireland (multi-winner form for regional parliament and most local elections); and Scotland (multi-winner form for all local government elections). In India, Nepal, and Pakistan elected officials use the multi-winner form of RCV to select their national senates and in the case of India its president. A form of RCV is also used to elect the president of Sri Lanka.
International election systems