RCV in Bloomington

Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) got rid of expensive city primaries where only 5-10% of voters participated, and combined two rounds of voting into a single “instant runoff” election in November, when turnout is higher and more representative of the community.

SAVES MONEY

By eliminating the need for a separate primary election, RCV saves hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars in administrative costs.

Bloomington’s first two ranked-choice elections were very successful

✔️ Eliminated high-cost ($100,000 per election), low-turnout (5-10% average turnout) primaries;

✔️ Voters had more candidate choices;

✔️ Voter turnout increased compared to similar elections;

✔️ All winning candidates earned a majority of support in a single cost-effective election;

✔️ Voters liked it and found it easy to use, with a 99.9% valid ballot rate.

✔️ In the races that went to a runoff, 93-98% of voters ranked their ballots.

✔️ Candidates were incentivized to talk to more voters (to earn second-choice as well as first-choice votes) and focus on issues most voters care about, which is good for our democracy. 

✔️ More choice and competition increases the likelihood voters will find candidates that reflect their values; which in turn encourages them to vote.