We believe our government should be of, by, and for the people. But the way we vote limits our choices for leaders and fails to hold them accountable to the communities they represent. We want better ideas, better candidates, we want a system that lives up to all the promises of democracy.
Ranked choice voting (RCV) allows voters the option to rank many candidates in order of preference: first, second, third, and so forth.
If your vote cannot help your top choice win, your vote counts for your next choice.
A bill to bring Ranked Choice Voting to Nebraska – Legislative Bill 125 – was introduced to the Nebraska Legislature on January 7, 2020 by Sen. McCollister.
LB 125 – if enacted – will give Nebraska voters a ballot that allows them to rank order multiple candidates.
Benefits of Ranked Choice Voting
1
Fresh Candidates
Local and independent leaders can run with or without support of a major party
RCV gives voters more choices and eliminates the “spoiler effect” – no matter how many candidates run for a given seat
2
EVERY VOTE COUNTS
If your first choice doesn’t win, your second choice is counted – your ballot isn’t thrown out and your vote isn’t wasted
3
Majority Support
Ranking candidates ensures that the winner has approval of the majority
4
Encourages Cooperation
With RCV, individual candidates are incentivized to work together and offer each other as alternatives for their voters’ second and third choices
5
Minimizes Negatives
Negative partisanship, mudslinging, gerrymandering, and gridlock: there are no silver bullets in democracy, but RCV mitigates the biggest problems
Why do we need RCV?
The way we count ballots limits competition and leaves voters with a false dichotomy of only two choices, but it doesn’t have to be this way
Where is RCV already used?
