Friend --
Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) isn't just gaining popularity -- it's upgrading democracy city by city, town by town, and inspiring voters everywhere. Let's dive into the latest highlights showing RCV's growing and unstoppable momentum!
The Big Apple Shows What's Possible!
In New York City's recent Democratic mayoral primary, Zohran Mamdani overcame former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s significant funding advantage and name recognition to win.
But was it because of Ranked Choice Voting? No and Yes.
It's important to note that Mamdani received enough votes to win under the old system, too, because he had the most votes after the first round. Under the old system, which still exists in most of the U.S., you don't need a majority of the vote to win, just the most votes.
But Mamdani, or any other underdog candidate, has something going in their favor with RCV that's harder to come by under the traditional system: Hope!
For the entire race, conventional wisdom, public polling, and media reporting suggested Andrew Cuomo would win the first round, but not with a majority. In a very crowded field, this meant the winner would need to be put over the top (50%+1 majority) by being the second choice of voters whose first choice was eliminated -- demonstrating the broadest electoral support.
Under the old system, beating the odds-on favorite in a crowded race usually feels impossible, which understandably depresses volunteer and financial support for any other candidate. But with Ranked Choice Voting, candidates and their supporters have hope that David can beat Goliath. And hope is like lighter fluid for movements -- it fires them up!
In the end, Mamdani secured a remarkable 100,000 additional votes from voters who ranked him as their second or third choice, clinching a decisive 56% victory. This result not only highlights the effectiveness of RCV but also underscores how voters are increasingly empowered and engaged through this innovative system.
New Yorkers embraced the system enthusiastically, with 81% of voters expressing confidence and comfort in using RCV. An impressive three-quarters of voters now support expanding the use of RCV, and exhausted ballots were significantly fewer compared to previous elections.
Historic Success in Virginia
Charlottesville, VA recently held its very first RCV election, marking a historic milestone. Residents experienced firsthand how RCV enhances voter satisfaction and ensures elections genuinely represent community preferences. This successful implementation demonstrates that RCV can transform democratic participation in diverse communities nationwide.
Grassroots Victory Brewing in Massachusetts
In Bedford, MA, local momentum is surging as the town’s select board recently voted to include RCV on their upcoming town meeting warrant. This grassroots-driven decision showcases the growing nationwide support for fairer, more representative elections at every level of governance.
Active and Engaged in California
Sacramento, CA is buzzing with excitement as activists and community members rally together to push for Ranked Choice Voting. Through vibrant grassroots education and outreach, Sacramento is demonstrating how committed citizens can lead the charge for democracy reform in their own communities.
Hope + Action
While progress is often accompanied by challenges, the victories we've achieved clearly show we’re headed in the right direction. RCV isn't just about reforming elections -- it’s about re-energizing democracy itself. By prioritizing voter choice, positivity in campaigns, and true representation, RCV is enabling voters everywhere to participate fully and meaningfully.
✨ So Let's Do This! ✨
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Inspired to help? Join us in building a stronger democracy -- your support matters immensely. Together, we can spread RCV to communities across the country. Every donation, big or small, helps fuel this powerful movement.
Thank you for standing with us and believing in a better future for our democracy. Even if we could do it without you... it would be so much less fun! 😀
With hope and determination,
Eileen Reavey
Executive Director
Rank the Vote
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being lost amid scattered, checkbox-style voting.”
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Rank The Vote's State Partner Events Page: There are over 50 events in the next 3 months, so be sure to plug in and get involved! RCV In The NewsNATIONAL Elon Musk, the America Party, and election reform: “[Elon] Musk isn’t the first to offer an alternative for voters seeking choices outside of the two major parties, and he likely won’t be the last. But until ranked choice voting (RCV) becomes the norm in U.S. elections, third parties will continue to be perceived as “spoilers” and struggle to break through as viable, lasting options for voters.” ‘We Need to Shift Who Has Power in This Country': Cynthia Richie Terrell Knows How We Can Cultivate Gender Balance in Politics: “In the United States context, we elect about 520,000 offices, 75 percent of them are nonpartisan and about 75 percent of them are single-winner. There are not that many reforms that can work in a nonpartisan, single-winner kind of environment. Ranked-choice voting happens to be the reform that works well in both of those contexts.” MICHIGAN Michigan campaign seeks to put ranked choice voting measure on November 2026 ballot: "A group called Rank MI Vote hopes voters will adopt a ballot proposal to bring the voting method to Michigan elections for major federal and statewide offices. The group's proposed amendment to the Michigan Constitution could appear on the November 2026 ballot. To put the issue up for a vote, organizers need to collect at least 446,198 signatures from Michigan voters." MINNESOTA Voting Study Final Report to the Legislature: “The [Minnesota Secretary of State] supports the ability of all local jurisdictions to adopt RCV for local non-partisan contests, and supports the use of RCV in even-year elections with necessary statutory changes.” Two Virginia districts would be good targets for Musk’s new party, but what he really needs is ranked choice voting: “Politics are always in flux, but they’re not as in flux today as they were then when the two major parties were still evolving to take their present shapes. If [Elon] Musk really wanted to disrupt the political process, he’d take another route — he’d push for ranked choice voting.” PENNSYLVANIA How Philadelphia city elections work and why they must change: "Implementing multi-member districts with ranked choice voting in Philadelphia would be a drastic change, but it would also be much more balanced for the size and geography of the city. Philadelphia has a lot of diversity between neighborhoods, especially in terms of income levels, but it also has a lot of diversity within neighborhoods, and such a system would represent all of that on City Council." NEW JERSEY Americans desperately need more political choice. NJ could lead the way by Christine Todd Whitman & Jon Corzine: "There’s a remarkable court case underway in New Jersey that could help us break out of the two-party 'doom loop.' Two other states, Kansas and Wisconsin, have similar cases, but New Jersey’s is the furthest along and will likely be the first one decided." TEXAS Austin’s toyed with ranked choice for years. Why the system, recently used in NYC, hasn’t been used here: “This system, called ranked choice voting, was approved by Austin voters in 2021 following a successful proposition initiative. The city also considered adopting the system in 2001. But why hasn’t Austin used it yet? Blame state law.” |
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