DNC Backs Down on Ranked Choice Voting Ban After Backlash

WASHINGTON, D.C. —In the wake of increased attention on a proposed ranked choice voting (RCV) ban, pressure from inside the Democratic Party and out forced the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee (RBC) to reverse course over the weekend during the party’s summer meeting.

The RBC initially approved amending the rules for delegate selection and allocation (Rule 14A) in May by adding two changes:

1. Voters would be prohibited from expressing their preferences for more than one candidate in presidential primaries and caucuses (e.g. like ranking them); and
2. In states where the law allows further expression of preferences (like RCV in Alaska, Maine and DC), the party will only consider first-choice totals for delegate selection and allocation.

In effect, this would have banned the use of ranked choice voting, since it is a system that allows voters to rank their preferences. And, it is the only alternative voting method that has passed at the state level (Alaska and Maine).

Though in Alaska’s case, the use of RCV has not been expanded by law to include presidential elections like in Maine.

It’s Official: Both Parties Oppose Ranked Choice Voting

Both the Democratic and Republican national committees are now opposing ranked choice voting, with the DNC set to vote Saturday on banning it in 2028 primaries even in states where voters approved it.

Independent Voter NewsShawn Griffiths

The RBC reaffirmed its approval of this change when it met again in June. And for a while, it flew under the radar. That is, until July, when reformers and more outlets—including IVN—picked up on FHQ’s original reporting on the ban.

Frank Leone, who proposed the amended language, argued that RCV was incompatible with the party’s delegate selection process. Notably, multiple state parties used it in 2020 and 2024, and their methods were approved by the RBC.

The DNC Insider Leading the Push to Kill Ranked Choice Voting by 2028

Democratic National Committee are close to adopting a ranked choice voting ban in the 2028 presidential primary, despite its use in Maine and Washington, D.C. state law.

Independent Voter NewsRob Richie

However, when the time came for the DNC body to vote on the RBC’s proposed rules package, Leone offered an amendment to use the same Rule 14A as 2024 (nixing any language that would prohibit RCV’s use).

FHQ reports:

“[A]s this summer meeting in Austin approached, it became clear that there was some resistance to what was viewed by some in and out of the DNC as a ban on RCV in the nomination process. I still do not know if it ultimately would have worked as a ban, but regardless the feeling in the camp against the change was intense. And it is undeniable that if adopted by the DNC, the rule would have significantly limited state parties’ ability to utilize RCV in a way compliant with the other DNC rules.

With that backlash as backdrop, then, when the Austin meeting of the DNC got down to the business of hearing the report from the co-chairs of the RBC, Leone stood to offer an amendment to the rules package before the full DNC. His amendment, which was subsequently overwhelmingly passed in a voice vote, reverted the language of Rule 14.A to what it was for the 2024 cycle, to what it had been prior to the May change. That is the language in black above, the language of the rule moving forward for 2028.”

US Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland posted a video on social media, thanking the DNC for dropping the rule change:

While Leone argued that RCV was incompatible with DNC rules, his position was based solely on the reform's use in single-winner elections. Raskin explained how it could be used in presidential primaries and caucuses.

Specifically, candidates who fail to reach at least 15% of the vote would be eliminated and their voters’ next applicable choices would be added to the tally. The process eliminates one candidate at a time, until only the candidates who reach 15% or higher remain.

“If people cast their ballots for a candidate who ended up with less than 15% of the vote, those votes would not be thrown away,” Raskin said.

“Ranked choice voting says give us your second choice, your third choice, just in case your first choice person doesn’t yet make it to the 15% threshold for winning delegates.”

The question now is how many state parties will use ranked choice voting in 2028.

It is required by law for presidential elections in places like Maine and DC, but Alaska, Hawaii, Kansas, Nevada, and Wyoming have also used it in Democratic nomination processes. Will more states join them?