Ranked choice voting by state.
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
NOV. 29, 2022 | If Georgia used the same method of voting that Maine and Alaska do, Georgians would have already settled who would have been elected to the U.S. Senate in 2022 from our state. There would have been no runoff election for the Senate. Georgians wouldn’t have the continuation of political advertising bombarding us.
That would have saved us Georgia taxpayers approximately $10 million that it cost to put on a runoff election. (We estimate this cost since Gwinnett is about 10 percent of Georgia voters, and it cost our county right at $1 million to stage and pay for the run-off.)
Maine and Alaska both have voted to use ranked-choice voting for their state primary, congressional, and presidential elections. It’s also the election system that 20 cities in the United States employ. Those cities include San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley and San Leandro Calif; Takoma Park, Md.; St. Paul, Minneapolis and St. Louis Park, Minn.; Santa Fe and Las Cruces, N.M.; Portland, Maine; and Cambridge, Mass. New York City, the largest voting population in the country, also has chosen to adopt the ranked-choice voting.
(Nevada voters this year approved a ballot measure that makes sweeping changes to the election system in their state. The measure establishes open primary elections in which the top five candidates advance and then a ranked-choice voting system for general elections. The system would operate for state and federal elections, but that would not include the race for U.S. president.)
Now here’s something of a bombshell. Georgia’s legislature has already installed a limited ranked-choice voting system in our midst. Most of us Georgians know little about this.
That’s right, most people in Georgia don’t realize it, but in 2022 Georgia began ranked-choice voting for all overseas voters in federal elections that might have a runoff potential. Ranked-choice voting was adopted as a way to avoid problems with overseas mailing, which can be unreliable in getting ballots in time for elections.
Four other southern states have ranked-choice voting for similar elections, including Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina.
Exactly what is ranked-choice voting? It’s also called “instant run-off voting.” It allows the voters to choose their candidate of choice, marking candidates as their first, second and third and subsequent choices. If, when the tabulating of votes is made, and no candidate wins a majority of voters, then these overseas votes are counted in the Georgia run-off.
The office of Secretary of State explains: “…Georgia voting rights extend all over the globe. Voting in elections away from your home county is easy and efficient. If you are in the military or in the family of an active service member, or if you are living in another country, you are subject to the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.”
Not only is this a change in overseas voting, but the state can send you an electronic ballot! The office says: “You can get your ballots electronically or by regular mail. Remember to include a valid email address on the application when requesting electronic ballot delivery, which is only available for federal elections.”
Hmmm. Our Legislators seem to be dipping our collective toes in both ranked-choice voting, and not only that, but allowing some Georgians to vote by electronic means! We never thought we would live to see that day! Thank you, legislators!
As we stagger through the December 6 run-off, talk to your legislators. Ask them to adopt ranked-choice voting in all our elections, which would immediately give us election winners without a runoff….and save a whole lot of money at the same time. Ranked-choice voting is a sophisticated way to prevent runoffs!
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
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