Ranked voting will decide a pivotal congressional race. How does that work?
1 month, 1 week ago

Ranked voting will decide a pivotal congressional race. How does that work?

Associated Press  

AUGUSTA, Maine — In a pivotal congressional race in Maine, the state’s ranked choice voting system is being used to determine the winner, but that won’t be the end of it. The contest between Democratic Rep. Jared Golden and Republican challenger Austin Theriault in Maine’s second congressional district is one of a dwindling number of uncalled races that will determine which party controls the U.S. House. As the counting got underway on Tuesday, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows explained the process — which she said would take most of the week — to a room crowded with media, lawyers and other representatives from the campaigns as well as hundreds more watching a livestream on her department’s YouTube page. Only then do they run the ranked choice voting tabulation, “so that second choices for people who did not choose Golden or Theriault are folding up into the count, and as a result we’ll know, between those two, who has 50%,” Bellows said.

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History of this topic

How the US Election Runs in Each State: A Detailed Breakdown
1 month, 2 weeks ago

How the US Election Runs in Each State: A Detailed Breakdown

Hindustan Times  

The article explores the variations in how each state runs its voting process in the upcoming US general election on November 5. It highlights how some states use ranked choice voting, others hold open primaries, and some states have multiple measures on the ballot. The article also provides examples of how the outcome of the election can vary depending on …

Portland's ranked choice voting experiment upends election
1 month, 2 weeks ago

Portland's ranked choice voting experiment upends election

Salon  

When developers announced plans for a new 38-bay diesel truck transfer station on the grounds of a long-abandoned K-Mart department store, East Portland, Oregon, residents who’d hoped it might become a grocery store instead quickly collected more than 6,600 signatures in opposition and worked to stop it. Portland’s four-member city council lived far from these neighborhoods, sometimes derided by locals …

2024 Is Ranked Choice Voting’s Coming Out Party. But Not Everyone Wants To Celebrate.
1 month, 3 weeks ago

2024 Is Ranked Choice Voting’s Coming Out Party. But Not Everyone Wants To Celebrate.

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING Voters in four states and the District of Columbia will have a chance to adopt ranked choice voting through ballot measures on Tuesday, setting the stage for a potentially massive expansion of an alternative voting system in which voters rank candidates rather than only picking their top choice. “The elevator pitch is that ranked choice voting gives …

Alaska Election: What to Expect on Election Day
1 month, 4 weeks ago

Alaska Election: What to Expect on Election Day

Associated Press  

In the upcoming Alaska general election, voters will decide the fate of the state's three electoral votes. The race for the House seat is particularly competitive, with Democrats holding a slim majority. The outcome of this election could have significant national implications, as it would determine the balance of power in the House.

How U.S. Elections Differ: A Deep Dive into the Ballot Measures
2 months, 2 weeks ago

How U.S. Elections Differ: A Deep Dive into the Ballot Measures

Associated Press  

The article explores the variations in how 50 states and the District of Columbia conduct their elections, with some states employing ranked choice voting and others using open primaries. The article also highlights the unique case of Alaska, where ranked choice voting is implemented for the presidency for the first time, and the recent initiative to repeal it on the …

Maine and Alaska: A Unique System of Ranked Choice Voting Could Decide the Future of the House
2 months, 2 weeks ago

Maine and Alaska: A Unique System of Ranked Choice Voting Could Decide the Future of the House

Associated Press  

An uncommon system of voting called ranked choice voting could decide which party controls the US House this fall. In Maine and Alaska, voters in competitive congressional districts will elect a winner using ranked choice voting. Rather than cast a single vote for their preferred candidate, voters rank their choices in order of preference on the ballot. If a candidate …

Voters in several states could upend how their elections are run
3 months ago

Voters in several states could upend how their elections are run

NPR  

Voters in several states could upend how their elections are run toggle caption Ronda Churchill/AFP via Getty Images Voters in a record number of states — including the battlegrounds of Arizona and Nevada — are set to decide this fall whether to enact far-reaching changes to how their elections are run. Nick Troiano — founding executive director of Unite America, …

Possibility of ranked-choice voting in Colorado faces a hurdle with new law
6 months, 2 weeks ago

Possibility of ranked-choice voting in Colorado faces a hurdle with new law

Associated Press  

DENVER — As a Colorado group gathers signatures to put a measure on the ballot installing ranked-choice voting in the state, Gov. If ranked voting makes the ballot in Colorado, the voters in the state would join those in Oregon, Alaska and Nevada who will decide on ranked voting in November. If the ballot measure passes, the new law signed …

Election deniers oppose bill to process absentee ballots on Monday before elections
1 year ago

Election deniers oppose bill to process absentee ballots on Monday before elections

Raw Story  

At a hearing of the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Shared Revenue, Elections and Consumer Protection, lawmakers heard hours of testimony from election conspiracy theorists in opposition to a bill that would allow election officials to begin processing absentee ballots on the Monday before an election. Republicans in Wisconsin have complained that in the state’s 2018 gubernatorial election and in the …

Ranked choice is 'the hot reform' in democracy. Here's what you should know about it
1 year ago

Ranked choice is 'the hot reform' in democracy. Here's what you should know about it

NPR  

Ranked choice is 'the hot reform' in democracy. "Ranked choice voting is the hot reform," said Larry Jacobs, a political science professor at the University of Minnesota. In Alaska and Maine, currently the only states that will use ranked choice voting next year in 2024, even if there's a third-party challenger, Otis says voters will be able to just vote …

What to expect during the ranked choice voting count in New York City Council races
1 year, 5 months ago

What to expect during the ranked choice voting count in New York City Council races

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — New York City elections officials began releasing preliminary results Wednesday from ranked choice voting in last week’s City Council primaries — but those results may change in the coming days and weeks as additional ballots are tallied. Wednesday’s release of preliminary ranked choice voting results indicates which candidates would win their primaries based on the latest available vote …

Maine considers ranked choice voting for governor races
1 year, 6 months ago

Maine considers ranked choice voting for governor races

Associated Press  

PORTLAND, Maine — Maine is advancing a proposal that would make it the second state to elect its governor using ranked choice voting, and it is expected for a vote in the state Legislature in the coming weeks after receiving a key committee approval. The sponsor of the amendment proposal, Democratic Sen. Cameron Reny of Bristol, said the change would …

EXPLAINER: How ranked choice voting works in Alaska
2 years, 1 month ago

EXPLAINER: How ranked choice voting works in Alaska

Associated Press  

One voter, one ballot. The first ranked choice contest under the system was an August special election won by Democrat Mary Peltola, the first Alaska Native to serve in the Congress and first woman to hold Alaska’s only House seat. Most Americans are used to casting their ballot for a single person for each office, but with a fierce contest …

Ranked choice voting supporters seek Oregon initiative
2 years, 10 months ago

Ranked choice voting supporters seek Oregon initiative

Associated Press  

SALEM, Ore. — Supporters of a voting method that allows people to rank candidates in order of preference want to give people in Oregon the chance to use the system in statewide elections. Co-petitioner Blair Bobier of Corvallis said the only difference is that one of them would include the presidential election in ranked choice voting, and the other would …

AP Explains: NYC election blunder spurs confusion
3 years, 5 months ago

AP Explains: NYC election blunder spurs confusion

Associated Press  

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York City election officials created doubt about the integrity of the city’s mayoral primary Tuesday when a failure to clear old data from a computer system led to inaccurate vote tallies in the closely watched contest. The error also had the potential to do damage to the reputation of ranked choice voting, a system the city …

Alaska voters narrowly approve initiative changing elections
4 years, 1 month ago

Alaska voters narrowly approve initiative changing elections

Associated Press  

JUNEAU, Alaska — Alaska voters have narrowly approved a ballot measure that would end party primaries and institute ranked choice voting in general elections. Alaska stands to join Maine, which for the first time this year used ranked choice voting in a general election for president and began using it for congressional races in 2018. The opposition group Defend Alaska …

Ranked choice voting question fails despite wealthy backers
4 years, 1 month ago

Ranked choice voting question fails despite wealthy backers

Associated Press  

Boston — Supporters of a ballot question that would have dramatically changed the way votes are cast and tallied in Massachusetts raised nearly $10 million to persuade voters to adopt the change — but ultimately failed at the ballot box Tuesday. Question 2 organizers had hoped to create a ranked choice voting system intended to help avoid the “spoiler effect” …

Maine’s ranked choice voting rules and procedures, explained
4 years, 1 month ago

Maine’s ranked choice voting rules and procedures, explained

Associated Press  

PORTLAND, Maine — For the first time in U.S. history, voters will use ranked choice voting to determine their pick for president of the United States. Maine’s use of ranked voting comes as Alaska and Massachusetts voters consider statewide votes to adopt the voting method. The method works Ranked voting arrives on Maine’s presidential ballots in a year when three …

Maine’s historic ranked vote could play big role in election
4 years, 2 months ago

Maine’s historic ranked vote could play big role in election

Associated Press  

PORTLAND, Maine — The presence of ranked choice voting on the ballot in Maine is a new wrinkle in a state famous for its own Yankee brand of political independence, and could play a role in deciding the presidency. Maine’s vote this year is a test case for whether the system can work elsewhere, said Craig Burnett, a Hofstra University …

Ranked-Choice Voting Could Play A Deciding Role In Maine's Senate Race
4 years, 2 months ago

Ranked-Choice Voting Could Play A Deciding Role In Maine's Senate Race

NPR  

Ranked-Choice Voting Could Play A Deciding Role In Maine's Senate Race Enlarge this image toggle caption Robert F. Bukaty/AP Robert F. Bukaty/AP One of this November's closest and highest-profile U.S. Senate races could turn on a unique way of voting in Maine. " The ranked-choice voting system was first used in the state's 2018 federal elections, so Maine voters are …

Federal judge declines to strike down ranked-choice voting
4 years, 4 months ago

Federal judge declines to strike down ranked-choice voting

Associated Press  

PORTLAND, Maine — A federal judge on Friday rejected a request to strike down Maine’s ranked voting system ahead of the November election. Four plaintiffs contended the voting system disenfranchises old and uneducated voters who don’t understand how it works and therefore select only a first choice without ranking the rest of the candidates. But Walker rejected the analysis, which …

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