Why New York’s Ranked Choice Voting is Totally Partisan

nyc
Shawn GriffithsShawn Griffiths
Published: 28 Jun, 2023
4 min read

New York City held primary elections on Tuesday, June 27, for city council and other municipal offices. NYC primaries are unique compared to most primary elections in the US in that they use ranked choice voting ballots and while RCV advocates tout the benefits it has on city elections -- they’re benefits only party members can enjoy...........

Ranked choice voting gives voters an opportunity to rank candidates in order of preference rather than marking a ballot for a single candidate. If no one in a 3+ person race garners a majority of first-choice selections, an instant runoff is held that eliminates the last place candidate and applies their voters’ next choices to the results.

The process continues in elections with large candidate fields until one person has over 50% of the vote. Advocates say RCV eliminates vote splitting and gives voters greater freedom to express their true preferences in elections, effectively giving them a greater sense of choice – something recently observed in Arlington, Virginia.

ALSO READ: Alaskans Have Spoken: New Voting System Is Fairer, Easy, and Gives Them Better Candidates

The alternative voting method does not inherently benefit a single party. It is used at the statewide level in Alaska and Maine. It is used in deep blue jurisdictions in California, and deep red areas in Utah. It has also been used in the nomination proceedings of both major parties in a handful of states.

New York City voters approved RCV’s use in 2019 with an overwhelming 74% of the vote – a clear indicator of how popular the concept was among city residents. Yet, the unfortunate reality is that many of the voters who likely said ‘yes’ to RCV are denied a chance to use it today.

Nearly all of the jurisdictions that have switched to RCV use it in the general election, which not only has a higher turnout compared to primary elections, but is also guaranteed to be open to all voters. The city charter amendment put before NYC voters in 2019, however, reserved RCV’s use for primaries and special elections.

The problem? New York’s primaries are closed – meaning only members of the Republican and Democratic Parties can participate in these publicly-funded and administered elections -- and by extension use ranked choice voting.

Like most places in the US, city council districts in NYC are decidedly safe for one party or the other. Odds are great that a city resident lives in a deep blue district, but even in districts where Republicans can win, the winner of an election is more times than not decided in the primary.

IVP Donate

The majority of the city council primary elections in 2023 didn’t need to go to an instant runoff because a single candidate got well over the majority threshold of first-choice selections. In fact, when incumbents won, they won big – sometimes with two-thirds or more of the vote. 

In District 13, for example, Democratic Council Member Marjorie Velázquez carried 66.17% of the vote with 96% of scanners reporting. In District 47, Republican Council Member Ari Kagan garnered over 75% of the vote.

It is safe to say these incumbents secured re-election on Tuesday, yet because the elections were restricted to party members only, voters outside the dominant party had zero say in who would represent them. 

This is the fundamental problem with closed primaries. By conditioning the right to vote on party membership, huge segments of the voting population are told to sit on the sidelines while their elected representatives are chosen for them. The addition of RCV, in this instance, doesn’t change the lack of choice non-party members have in elections.

There are plenty of studies and surveys RCV advocates can offer that show how the voting method improves voter experiences and gives them a greater sense of choice. In most cases, it has shown to be a truly nonpartisan remedy to US elections-- but it cannot provide this remedy in NYC if it only empowers Democrats and Republicans.

To ensure fairer, more equitable elections, NYC needs more than RCV in the primaries. It needs to guarantee all voters, regardless of political affiliation (or lack thereof), the same access to publicly-funded elections.  The only way to strengthen representation is to ensure voters across the political spectrum benefit from reform – not just members of private political organizations.

You Might Also Like

soldiers boarding a plane.
Left Behind: How Runoff Elections Disenfranchise Military and Overseas Voters -- And How We Can Fix It
When Americans serve overseas, they should never have to wonder whether their vote will count. Yet for thousands of service members and U.S. citizens abroad, the very structure of our elections makes that impossible -- especially when it comes to runoff elections....
16 Sep, 2025
-
4 min read
How It Really Works Voter Rights
How It Really Works: Does Your Vote Even Matter?
Imagine showing up to vote in November, proud that you are doing your civic duty, only to learn that the real contest happened six months ago without you. The winner was decided in a low-turnout primary while you were busy living your life. This is not a conspiracy. It is how the system was built. ...
10 Sep, 2025
-
12 min read
Voters v. The Legislature: Who Will Decide the Fate of Ranked Choice Voting in Michigan?
Voters v. The Legislature: Who Will Decide the Fate of Ranked Choice Voting in Michigan?
Rank MI Vote is gathering petition signatures for an amendment to the Michigan constitution that – if approved by voters – will allow voters who cast a ballot for president, Congress, governor, and more to use ranked choice voting instead of marking just a single candidate....
08 Sep, 2025
-
4 min read
Proposition 50 voter guide
California Prop 50: Partisan Power Play or Necessary Counterpunch?
November 4 marks a special election for what has become the most controversial ballot measure in California in recent memory: Proposition 50, which would circumvent congressional districts drawn by the state’s independent redistricting commission for a legislative-drawn map....
01 Oct, 2025
-
9 min read
court gavel.
Virtual Discussion: The Fight for Equal Independent Voting Rights Makes it to SCOTUS
Every major voting rights movement in U.S. history – whether successful or not – has intertwined with landmark litigation. This was the case for women’s suffrage. It was the case for civil rights. And it is the case in the ongoing effort to protect the right of all voters to have equal participation in taxpayer-funded elections – something millions of independent voters are denied across the U.S....
29 Sep, 2025
-
2 min read
Supreme Court building
SCOTUS Considers Challenge to Closed Primaries -- Here's Why It Is Such a Big Deal
In a dramatic step forward for litigation challenging closed primaries, the U.S. Supreme Court has indicated they are going to conference to discuss whether to grant a writ of certiorari to Polelle v. Florida Secretary of State; a case challenging Florida's closed primaries that Open Primaries has supported since its inception....
26 Sep, 2025
-
2 min read