House panel debates ranked choice voting

House panel debates ranked choice voting

By PETER HANCOCK
Capitol News Illinois
phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois lawmakers are debating whether the state should join a growing list of jurisdictions in the United States that allow voters to pick more than one candidate for an office, ranking them in order of preference rather than choosing just one.

Ranked choice voting, or as it’s sometimes called, “instant runoff voting,” actually has a long history in U.S. elections at the municipal level. But it has become more widely adopted in modern times, including in several states and dozens of municipalities.

“This is a better voting model to ensure all voices and choices are reflected in the election results,” Amber McReynolds, an elections expert and former elections director for the city and county of Denver, Colorado, told a House committee Wednesday. “It prioritizes and expands voter choice, it puts voters first, and it improves the voting experience for all.”

The proposals facing Illinois lawmakers are subject to change as they move through the legislative process.

In a general ranked choice voting system, voters mark candidates in the order of their preference in races with three or more candidates. The voter can rank as many candidates as they choose. In a five-person race, for example, a voter might rank one candidate first, another second and leave the sections of the other three candidates blank.

In the first round of counting, ballots are counted as they are now, with everyone’s vote going to their first choice.

If no one has achieved a majority, the person with the fewest votes is eliminated and their voters’ ballots are recounted with their votes going to their highest ranked candidate that is still in the race. 

This continues until a candidate earns a majority of votes counted in a given round of tabulation. This may not mean a majority of all people who voted in the election, since a ballot isn’t counted after all of their listed choices are eliminated.

According to the group FairVote, which advocates for ranked choice voting, there are 64 jurisdictions that allow that method of elections, including the states of Maine and Alaska, as well as two counties and 60 cities.

Colorado enacted a law in 2021 that allows municipalities to opt in to ranked choice voting in local elections. And Democratic parties in five states – Alaska, Kansas, Hawaii, Nevada and Wyoming – used it, wholly or partially, in their 2020 presidential primaries.

There are currently three bills pending in the General Assembly that would allow ranked choice voting in one form or another.

House Bill 2716, by Rep. Nabeela Syed, D-Inverness, would implement the system for elections for the General Assembly, governor and other statewide constitutional officers.

House Bill 2807, by Rep. Maurice West, D-Rockford, would establish ranked choice voting in presidential primaries in Illinois. And House Bill 3749, by Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, would allow municipalities to use ranked choice voting if the municipality’s chief election authority submits a written statement saying they have the ability to conduct such an election.

The committee discussion of the three bills was “subject matter” only, meaning they did not come for a vote. They have been re-referred to the House Rules Committee, meaning they may face an uphill battle to be passed into law in the current General Assembly.

 

Impact on elections

Supporters of ranked choice voting argue that it has several advantages over “plurality voting,” in which the person with the most votes after one round of counting wins regardless of whether that person has a majority.

One, they say, is that it reduces the number of “wasted” votes – that is, votes cast for candidates who drop out of the race after it’s too late to remove their name from the ballot. McReynolds said that is particularly true in presidential primaries in which a large field of candidates is winnowed down to just a few after the first few states cast ballots.

“In 2016, more than 2 million voters actually took the effort to vote for a candidate on the Republican side (after they had dropped out of the race). Their vote was lost,” she said. “In 2020, around 3 million to 4 million of Democrats – that’s the estimated (number) – had that same issue happen because lots of dropouts start happening after Super Tuesday in those periods of time.”

Under ranked choice voting, she said, even if a voter’s first choice is no longer in the race, their second or third choice could still count in subsequent rounds of counting.

Some advocates also say it can reduce the overall cost of certain elections by eliminating the need for runoffs, like the one coming up April 4 in the Chicago mayoral race.

“There are estimates that runoff elections cost the city between $25 and $35 million each time,” Buckner said. “And so this, if for no other reason, for financial reasons, being able to give us winners of both aldermanic and mayoral elections on the initial election date and to save some of those dollars and resources from the city and municipality.”

But Boone County Clerk Julie Bliss, speaking on behalf of the Illinois Association of County Clerks and Recorders, said there would be significant up-front costs for local officials to buy the voting machines and software needed for ranked choice voting, as well as the cost of printing and mailing what would be much larger ballots.

“Expense and funding absolutely is going to be a question that all the local election authorities are going to have for you,” she told the committee. “… The initial cost of implementing something like this is going to be higher.”

Brian Pryor, deputy director of election operations at the Illinois State Board of Elections, said there are currently no voting systems in Illinois that could implement ranked choice voting immediately.

“Some systems are capable of conducting ranked choice voting but they require additional components or software, which would need to be certified for use in Illinois,” he said. “There are currently 16 jurisdictions that have no capability of implementing ranked choice voting. These jurisdictions would need to procure new equipment.”

 

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government. It is distributed to more than 400 newspapers statewide, as well as hundreds of radio and TV stations. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.

 

Leave a Comment





Local News

SRP-IMAGE-Logo

College Football | Marian (Indiana) and St. Francis highlight Saint Xavier 2024 home slate

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Correspondent Saint Xavier has released its 2024 football schedule, which has the Cougars opening the season in Michigan. SXU will travel to the Detroit suburb of Southfield to play Lawrence Tech on Sept. 7 in a Mid-States Football Association crossover. The Cougars’ home opener kicks off at noon on Sept.…

Morton's Nariah Clay was named to the NCJAA Division II all-tournament team as the Panthers finished fifth in the nation. Photo courtesy of Morton College Department of Athletics

Morton College women’s hoops takes fifth in nation

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Correspondent For the second year in a row, the Morton College women’s basketball team finished fifth in the country. The Panthers closed out the 2023-24 campaign in Joplin, Missouri, with a 75-67 victory over Iowa Western on March 23 in the consolation championship game at the NJCAA Division II National…

Marist's Jack Meader (left) and Nathen Toth face each other during a block attempt against Downers Grove North in the semifinals of the Marist Invitational on March 23. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Boys Volleyball | Marist tops Lockport for Gold at RedHawks Invite

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Randy Whalen Correspondent Marist enjoys getting its season going by hosting a tournament that is now in its 20th year. They had a good time again this season, going unbeaten over five matches in two days to win the Marist RedHawks Invitational for the sixth consecutive time. The RedHawks ended the tournament…

CRRNH_CosmoPhotoMDWArmory_032724

City wants to buy armory at MDW

Spread the love

Spread the love. Has been vacant since 2017 .  By Tim Hadac For decades, it served military purposes, as well as Chicago’s gateway for Presidents stopping off in the city. But the Army National Guard Midway Armory, 5400 W. 63rd St., has been mostly vacant since 2017, when the Illinois Army National Guard ceased operations…

summit police logo

2 charged in Summit junkyard burglary

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Bob Bong Two men have been charged in connection with a break-in last month at the Pick-n-Pull used auto parts store and junkyard in Summit. George Ainalakis, 39, of Carol Stream, was arrested February 26 at the business, while Chad Wickert, 40, of Brookfield, was arrested March 13 by Hodgkins police. Police…

Mary Ellen Fox --Photo by Cosmo Hadac

A successful career serving thousands

Spread the love

Spread the love. By Tim Hadac Editor Clear-Ridge Reporter & NewsHound (708)-496-0265 . Most folks work for years at their jobs, expecting and receiving little fanfare, then retire quietly. Garfield Ridge resident Mary Ellen Fox planned to retire from her 30-year job in the City Clerk’s Office quietly; and she did, earlier this year. But…

Priscilla Steinmetz, of Orland Park's Bridge Teen Center, has fun March 7 at Congressman Sean Casten's desk in Washington. (Bridge Teen Center photo)

Casten secures $11M for district; invites Bridge Teen founder to State of Union

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Congressman Sean Casten is bringing some big bucks home. Casten (D-6th) announced that he helped secure more than $11 million in federal funding for local community projects. Included in that bounty is: $1.28 million to Evergreen Park for water main replacement. $500,000 to La Grange for storm and sanitary sewer…

Forest View Village Clerk Laura McGuffey (left) swears in Maria Guzman as a full-time police officer while Chief Bianel Zarate looks on. (Photos by Carol McGowan)

Forest View swears in new police officers

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Carol McGowan The Village of Forest View has a new full-time police officer and a newly promoted corporal on the force. In front of a full-house at their February 27 Board of Trustees meeting, Clerk Laura McGuffey did the honors swearing-in Maria Guzman as a full-time officer, and promoting Officer Jorge Sanchez…

Abraham Kiswani was sentenced to two years for income tax evasion.

Burbank businessman sentenced for income tax evasion

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Bob Bong A Burbank businessman has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for willfully evading more than $3.7 million in federal and state income taxes. Abraham Kiswani, 54, pleaded guilty last year to a federal tax evasion charge.  In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Manish S. Shah…

oak lawn logo

Oak Lawn ups fines for blowing off illegal fireworks

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Joe Boyle Oak Lawn residents who blow off illegal fireworks this summer will find that doing so will be more expensive. An ordinance was passed by a 5-0 vote by the Oak Lawn Village Board on March 12 that will increase the fine from $50 to $100 for residents who are lighting…

Neighbors

Sheri Cannataro, of Cannataro Farms, demonstrates the gear she wears to extract honey from a bee hive for visitors who stopped by to see her products at the Hills Chamber of Commerce Business and Community Expo Saturday at Conrady Junior High School in Hickory Hills. (Photos by Joe Boyle)

Residents warm up to Hills Chamber Business Expo

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Joe Boyle Spring has arrived but winter continues to leave its calling card. However, that did not prevent the Hills Chamber of Commerce from holding its 10th annual Business and Community Expo Saturday at Conrady Junior High School in Hickory Hills. While the temperatures were frigid and windy outside, the spirit inside…

Palos Park Mayor Nicole Milovich-Walters speaks about zoning codes at the March 25 council meeting. (Photo by Jeff Vorva)

Palos Park to tweak outdated village zoning codes

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva The village of Palos Park has no grand plan to change the village landscape. But officials want to modernize some of its zoning codes. “The village has not comprehensively updated its development regulations since 1960,” Mayor Nicole Milovich-Walters said at the March 25 village council meeting. “Due to this, there…

Ridgeland sd122 logo

SD122 psychologist resigns over Islamophobic posts

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Nuha Abdessalam A psychologist for Ridgeland School District 122 has resigned after hundreds of parents demanded she be fired for social media posts that were pro-Israeli and anti-Palestinian. District Supt. Joseph Matise announced at a schoolboard meeting last week that Dr. Laurie Hoke had resigned. “Dr. Hoke will no longer be working…

CRR_NH

Clear-Ridge Reporter and NewsHound March 27, 2024

Spread the love

Spread the love

Mary Stanek

Will the month of March leave like a lion?

Spread the love

Spread the love. By Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place •  (773) 517-7796 . The days are getting longer and slightly warmer. But my prediction of a few weeks ago–March is certainly not leaving like a lamb–may prove to be correct. A sure sign of spring in…

Peggy Zabicki

Robin sighting a sign of new beginnings

Spread the love

Spread the love. By Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place •  (773) 504-9327 . I saw a robin the other day. This was the first sighting of the season for me. I remember my mom saying that the first robin of spring is a promise of new beginnings. May it be so. Is…

SRP-IMAGE-Logo

Thome sweet Thome: Nazareth baseball defeats Hall of Famer Jim Thome’s alma mater

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Correspondent The Nazareth baseball team took a road trip to the middle of Illinois and improved its record to 7-0 on March 23 by beating Limestone, 6-0. Limestone is the alma mater of former White Sox player and Baseball Hall of Fame member Jim Thome, who is an assistant coach…

SRP-IMAGE-Logo

Chicago Catholic League greats headed to Hall of Fame

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Correspondent A handful of area stars will be inducted into the Chicago Catholic League Coaches Association Hall of Fame. The list features Kevin Bracken (St. Laurence, wrestling), Kevin Carberry (St. Rita, football), Matt Macievic (De La Salle, cross county and track), Mike McGrew (Mount Carmel, football), Dan Nicholson (Brother Rice,…

SRP-IMAGE-Logo

Fire II tops Chicago City, advances to to second round of Hunt Open Cup

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Correspondent The Chicago Fire II picked up a late invitation to the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and beat Chicago City, 6-0, on March 20 in front of an announced crowd of 810 at SeatGeek Stadium. Defender Giovanni Granda and midfielder Vitaliy Hlyut each made their professional debut and scored…

Julia Bianchi heads back on defense shortly after delivering a first-half goal for the Chicago Red Stars on March 23 at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Red Stars top Seattle, open season with two wins for first time in franchise history

Spread the love

Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Correspondent Last year’s last-place finish notwithstanding, the Chicago Red Stars have had a pretty rich history of success. The franchise has seven NWSL playoff appearances and has finished runner-up twice (2019, 2021), and prior to 2022 had finished no lower than fourth in the league ‘s regular season standings for…