Ranked Choice Voting Explained: How It Works and When to Use It

Ranked choice voting (RCV) -- also called instant runoff voting -- is reshaping elections across the United States. Instead of picking a single candidate, voters rank their choices in order of preference. If no one wins an outright majority, the weakest candidate is eliminated and their voters' second choices are redistributed, continuing until someone crosses the 50% threshold.

The concept is straightforward, but the implications are significant. RCV changes how campaigns are run, how voters express their preferences, and how winners are determined. This article covers the mechanics, the data on voter satisfaction and turnout, and the honest trade-offs -- plus how you can apply ranked choice logic to your own polls and group decisions.

1. What Is Ranked Choice Voting?

In a traditional plurality election, each voter picks one candidate. The candidate with the most votes wins, even if that means winning with 30% support while 70% of voters preferred someone else. Ranked choice voting addresses this problem by letting voters express a fuller picture of their preferences.

According to the Council of State Governments, RCV allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference -- first choice, second choice, third choice, and so on. If a voter's top-ranked candidate is eliminated, their vote transfers to their next-ranked candidate, ensuring their voice still counts in the final outcome.

The core idea: the winner should be the candidate acceptable to the broadest group of voters, not just the one with the most passionate minority.

2. How RCV Counting Works, Step by Step

The counting process is often called "instant runoff" because it simulates multiple rounds of runoff elections in a single ballot. Here is how it works:

3. Where Ranked Choice Voting Is Used Today

RCV is no longer an experiment. It is used in major elections across multiple states and dozens of cities. Here is the current landscape:

The Alaska story is particularly notable. In 2024, a ballot measure to repeal RCV failed by the narrowest margin in the state's history, showing just how divisive -- and closely watched -- the RCV debate has become.

4. What Voters Actually Think of RCV

One of the most common criticisms of ranked choice voting is that it confuses voters. The data tells a different story.

Santa Fe, New Mexico (2018)

According to FairVote's data on RCV elections, exit polls in Santa Fe's 2018 ranked choice election found that 94% of voters were satisfied with the RCV experience, and 71% said they wanted to use ranked choice voting again in future elections.

New York City (2021)

NYC's first ranked choice primary in June 2021 was the largest test of RCV in U.S. history. According to post-election survey data compiled by FairVote:

• More than 90% of voters found the ranked choice ballot "simple to complete"
• 77% said they wanted to use RCV again in future elections
• Only 16% reported feeling confused by the ranking process

These numbers are especially striking given that NYC's 2021 primary involved a crowded field of 13 mayoral candidates -- hardly a simple ballot by any measure.

5. Does RCV Affect Voter Turnout?

One of the strongest arguments for ranked choice voting is its potential to improve voter participation -- particularly by eliminating low-turnout runoff elections.

According to FairVote's research on RCV and turnout, traditional two-round runoff elections see a median 37% decline in voter turnout between the first round and the runoff. That means more than a third of voters who showed up for the initial election do not come back for the decisive one -- the election that actually determines the winner.

RCV eliminates this problem by consolidating the process into a single election. Every voter's preferences are captured on one ballot, on one day.

The data from cities using RCV supports this. Minneapolis saw a 9.6 percentage point increase in voter turnout after adopting ranked choice voting, according to FairVote's turnout analysis. While turnout is affected by many factors -- candidate excitement, weather, national political climate -- the pattern of stable or increased participation under RCV is consistent across jurisdictions.

6. Pros and Cons of Ranked Choice Voting

RCV is not without trade-offs. Here is an honest assessment based on reporting from Britannica ProCon and the American Bar Association's 2025 analysis.

Arguments in favor

• Majority winners. RCV ensures the winner has broad support, not just a plurality. In a five-way race under traditional rules, a candidate could win with 21% of the vote. Under RCV, the winner must eventually earn over 50% of active ballots.
• Eliminates the spoiler effect. Third-party and independent candidates can run without being blamed for "splitting the vote." Voters can rank a minor-party candidate first and a major-party candidate second without fear of wasting their vote.
• Reduces negative campaigning. Candidates have an incentive to appeal to their opponents' supporters for second-choice rankings. Research from the American Bar Association confirms that RCV elections tend to feature less negative advertising and more policy-focused campaigns.
• Saves money. By eliminating separate runoff elections, cities and states avoid the cost of running a second election. NYC estimated savings of $20 million per election cycle by consolidating primaries and runoffs.
• Higher turnout. As discussed above, RCV avoids the dramatic turnout drop-off that plagues traditional runoff elections.

Arguments against

• Complexity. While most voters report finding RCV simple, the counting process is harder to follow in real-time. Multi-round tabulation takes longer than a simple plurality count, and results cannot always be announced on election night.
• Ballot exhaustion. If a voter only ranks two candidates and both are eliminated, their ballot is exhausted -- it no longer counts. Critics argue this means the eventual winner may not truly have majority support of all voters who cast ballots, only of those whose ballots remained active. According to Britannica ProCon, this is one of the most debated aspects of RCV.
• Implementation costs. Upgrading voting equipment, retraining poll workers, and running voter education campaigns require upfront investment -- though these costs are typically offset by eliminating runoff elections over time.
• Potential for monotonicity violations. In rare cases, ranking a candidate higher can theoretically cause them to lose, or ranking them lower can help them win. While this is mathematically possible, documented real-world occurrences are extremely rare.
• Political resistance. Incumbents and major parties sometimes oppose RCV because it benefits challengers and third-party candidates. This has led to repeal efforts in several jurisdictions.

7. How to Use RCV in Your Own Polls

Ranked choice voting is not just for government elections. The same logic applies anytime a group needs to make a decision among multiple options and you want the outcome to reflect broad consensus rather than plurality rule.

When RCV makes sense

• Team elections and board votes. Choosing a team lead, committee chair, or board member from a field of three or more candidates.
• Prioritization decisions. Ranking product features, project ideas, or budget allocations by group priority.
• Event planning. Picking a venue, date, or theme when there are many options and no clear favorite.
• Multi-option decisions with no clear majority. Any scenario where a simple plurality vote might produce a winner that most people did not actually prefer.

When to stick with simple voting

• Binary decisions. Yes/no questions do not benefit from ranking.
• Two options. With only two choices, RCV is identical to a standard vote.
• Low-stakes or time-sensitive decisions. If you just need a quick answer and the stakes are low, a simple poll is faster and easier for everyone.

Running an RCV poll

Poll Pixie supports ranked choice polls, making it straightforward to create an RCV-style vote for your team, organization, or community. Set up your options, share the link, and let respondents drag-and-drop their rankings. The system handles the instant runoff tabulation automatically and shows you results round by round.