'If You Can Keep It': The Realities Of Ranked Choice Voting

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Both major political parties have now wrapped up their conventions. In one way, they're advertisements for why Americans should vote for each party's candidates, from president all the way down the ticket.

But this year, voters in five states will see another question on their ballot: whether to use a different method to elect their representatives.

The system is known broadly as ranked choice voting. There are different flavors of it. In some cases, it's called "instant runoff voting" or "final five voting."

In all cases, they describe a way of electing candidates that's different from what most Americans are used to. As a voter, you get to rank your preferred candidates. So, you don't just choose one name. You may have a first, second, and third preference for who represents you.

When voting is over, a process of elimination takes place. The lowest vote-getter in the first round is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed to higher vote-getters, according to how voters ranked the other candidates. The process continues until you end up with a winner. Ranked choice voting systems are already in place for some races in Alaska, Maine, and cities like Minneapolis and New York City.

What's driving reformers to push for these ranked choice voting systems in more states? And how are voters responding?

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