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Defending the Electoral College and the Constitution since 2009
A campaign to bring ranked-choice voting to Michigan has failed. The Rank MI Vote campaign, supported by a Maryland-based group called FairVote, would have amended the state’s Constitution to require RCV for some elections, make it an option for others, and leave some elections unchanged. Yet after months of campaigning, and numerous predictions of an easy victory, the group admitted being far short of the required number of signatures and has suspended its efforts.
Their failure is another in a string of defeats for FairVote and other RCV advocates. In 2024, related measures were on the ballot in a diverse group of states: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and Oregon. In every one, voters rejected RCV. And in Missouri, voters supported a measure to ban RCV. The only successes for RCV that year were in Alaska, where it barely survived being repealed, and the District of Columbia, where it was included in a larger reform package adopted by voters.
RCV simply isn’t popular. Voters do not want a more cumbersome election process, with longer lines, more uncertainty, and slower results. Are many Americans frustrated with politics and governance? Yes, but the fact that faith in institutions was higher in the past—when the two-party system was stronger—suggests that RCV would make things worse.
Of course, the Michigan proposal was particularly awful (as I’ve explained before). It applied to all federal offices but only a few state ones, and created a local option. Voters and election officials would have faced two different election systems each cycle, with frequent changes possible. It also attempted to integrate RCV with straight-ticket voting and to open the door for multi-member districts.
In a rare move, the Michigan Association of County Clerks took a position against the Rank MI Vote measure. The group of local election officials unanimously adopted a resolution condemning the measure, warning it would “erode the public’s trust.” Meanwhile, 17 states have banned RCV and the Michigan House has passed similar legislation.