Ranked Choice Voting
Maine Democrats
Ranked Choice Voting Is As Easy As 1-2-3:
- Pick your 1st choice candidate and completely fill in the oval next to their name under the 1st column.
- If you have a 2nd choice candidate, fill in the oval next to their name under the 2nd column.
- You can rank all candidates. You can still vote for only one candidate if you prefer. However, ranking other candidates does not harm your 1st choice.
What is ranked-choice voting?
Ranked-choice voting, sometimes called “instant run-off voting,” allows voters to choose their candidates in order of preference. This is done by marking candidates as their first, second, third, and subsequent choices. The votes are tabulated in rounds, with the lowest-ranked candidates eliminated in each round until there are only two candidates left. The one who is determined to have received the majority of the votes (more than 50%) in the final round is declared the winner. It is different from our previous method of voting, in which voters choose only one candidate for each office and the winner is determined by plurality (whoever gets the most votes).
How does ranked choice voting work?
Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) is counted according to clear rules. In races with three or more candidates, if no one gets more than half of the votes on Election Night, the count continues at a central location in Augusta.
Ballots and counting equipment from each town are securely sent there. Votes are then counted in rounds. In each round, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. If your top choice is eliminated, your vote is moved to your next choice on the ballot. This process continues until one candidate receives a majority and wins.
You can also look at sample marked ballots to see how votes are transferred between candidates during counting.
How can I learn more about the candidates and issues on ballots?
The Department of the Secretary of State will post a list of candidates for each office as well as a Citizens Guide to the Referendum Election on our Upcoming Elections page. The non-partisan guide, published for every referendum election, explains the referendum issues. Information on candidates, including their positions on the issues of the day, is not available via our department. Voters should look to candidates websites, social media and printed outreach materials, as well as Maine media outlets and public debates for this information.
What if I want to rank my choices among the write-in candidates?
The ranked-choice voting law states that a voter may include no more than one write-in candidate among that voter’s ranked choices for each office. Thus, you will see only one space on your ballot to write in a candidate’s name and rank that candidate. You can view the full list of qualified write-in candidates on our Upcoming Elections page. All write-in candidates must be formally declared as such, by the deadline prior to the election; write-in votes for any undeclared persons will not be counted.
I only want to choose one candidate in a ranked-choice race. How should I mark my ballot?
If you only want to vote for one candidate in a ranked-choice race, the ballot instructs that you mark only the first choice oval for your candidate. You can also choose to mark the ovals all the way across in every ranking (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. choice) for your candidate. Both of these markings are valid and will result in your vote being counted for your candidate throughout all the rounds of the ranked-choice voting process, unless/until that candidate is eliminated from the race. See Slides 5 and 6 in our example marked ballots for reference.