City Council Seeks Your Opinion!

The City Council is currently tasked with writing an ordinance that will outline how Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) elections will be conducted in Bloomington. They are seeking voter input about how many preferences they’d like to rank for city council elections. The Let’s Talk Bloomington RCV survey will close March 15.

How Many Preferences Can I Rank?

The number of candidates a voter can rank in a Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) election differs in communities using RCV depending on the capability of their voting equipment and software. In Minneapolis and St. Louis Park, the voting equipment to date has limited the ballot design to 3 rankings. In some jurisdictions across the country, the equipment can accommodate as many rankings as there are candidates.

Research shows that providing up to 6 rankings is sufficient for voters to express their full preferences and minimize ballot exhaustion. Minneapolis is exploring system upgrades this year that would not only allow the ballot to provide more than 3 rankings, but make the ballot design more efficient and user-friendly. Bloomington, Minnetonka and St. Louis Park will have the same opportunity to take advantage of these improvements. Read more here.

Mayor Busse has recommended voters be able to rank up to 6 candidates, and we endorse that recommendation. Share your opinion with the City Council by March 15.