Organizations Advocating & Supporting RCV
Here are key organizations you might partner with, reference, or invite to collaborate:
National Organizations:
FairVote (fairvote.org) — Pioneering national organization advancing RCV since 1992; provides research, model legislation, and policy support.
Rank the Vote (rankthevote.us) — grassroots advocacy group with state chapters nationwide.
Unite America (uniteamerica.org) — major funder & advocate; invested heavily in Alaska’s system.
RepresentUs (represent.us) — describes itself as “America’s largest grassroots anti-corruption movement”; links RCV to fighting corruption.
Common Cause (commoncause.org) — has chapters in many states actively working on RCV (e.g., NY, TX, IL, NM, MD).
Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center (rcvresources.org) — provides technical support to jurisdictions implementing RCV, offers open-source tabulation software (RCTab).
Veterans for All Voters (veteransforallvoters.org) — campaigns for non-partisan reforms including RCV.
League of Women Voters (lwv.org) — national organization with many state/local chapters that support RCV (ME, MA, VT, DC, CA, Portland).
Equal Citizens (equalcitizens.us) — founded by Harvard Law Prof. Lawrence Lessig, runs campaigns for electoral reform including RCV.
State / Local Groups:
Many states have local RCV advocacy groups (for example: Rank MI Vote in Michigan; Voter Choice Massachusetts in MA).
Local chapters of Common Cause and League of Women Voters also frequently engage.
You can check the FairVote “state allies” page for a full list of local/regional organizations active in your state.
Ranked-Choice Voting (RCV)
You’re probably sick of feeling like you have to choose the lesser of two evils every election. What if you could actually vote for who you want, without worrying about “wasting” your vote or letting the worst candidate win?
What is Ranked-Choice Voting?
Ranked-choice voting (RCV) lets you rank candidates 1st, 2nd, 3rd (and so on) in a single election. If your top-choice candidate isn’t going to win, your vote transfers to your next choice so the final winner has broad support.
Why It Matters
Majority winners: Instead of a candidate winning with a small plurality, RCV helps ensure the winner has broader backing.
Real choice without fear: You can vote your values first and still influence the outcome.
Better behavior in campaigns: Since candidates aim to be many voters’ 2nd or 3rd choice, there’s a stronger incentive for respectful, broad-based outreach.
More diverse representation: When more people feel they can run, voters have more meaningful options.
Cost savings: Eliminating separate runoff elections can save taxpayer money and avoid election fatigue.
Success Stories & Real Outcomes
Since 2004, over 500 “instant-runoff” style elections have taken place in the U.S., with tens of millions of ranked ballots cast.
As of April 2025, RCV is used in local elections in dozens of cities (including Seattle and Salt Lake City) and in multiple states.
State-level adoptions:
Maine — first state to use RCV statewide (since 2018)
Alaska — RCV for all state, federal & presidential elections (since 2022)
Hawaii — uses RCV for special federal elections (since 2022)
Washington, D.C. — voters approved RCV for all elections starting in 2026
Notable outcomes:
Alaska’s system helped elect Mary Peltola (Alaska Native) to the U.S. House and helped moderate Republican Lisa Murkowski fend off extreme-wing challengers.
In NYC’s 2025 primary, RCV enabled coalition politics: candidates endorsed each other as second choices, held joint events, broadened appeal.
Balanced Reality: Good News & Challenges
Good news: As of 2024, RCV ballot measures have won 27 consecutive city referendums.
Challenges: As of 2025, 17 states have banned RCV (mostly states under one‐party legislative control). Some election officials raise concerns about complexity, cost, or counting time. But jurisdictions that invest in voter education, smart ballot design, and transparent results display report strong performance.
Why This Matters for Project REAL
Project REAL believes in giving people real voice — not just the appearance of choice. RCV aligns with our core values: it lifts people up (gives you genuine choice), helps people (reduces vote anxiety and wasted votes), is fair to the least among us (empowers smaller-voice candidates, avoids vote splitting), and is honest (makes sure winners have real majority backing).