{"id":1622266,"date":"2022-08-26T06:47:40","date_gmt":"2022-08-26T10:47:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1622266"},"modified":"2022-08-26T06:47:55","modified_gmt":"2022-08-26T10:47:55","slug":"ranked-choice-voting-is-a-nightmare-and-its-on-the-ballot-in-nevada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ranked-choice-voting-is-a-nightmare-and-its-on-the-ballot-in-nevada\/","title":{"rendered":"Ranked-Choice Voting Is A Nightmare \u2014 And It\u2019s On The Ballot In Nevada"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Franked-choice-voting-is-a-nightmare-and-its-on-the-ballot-in-nevada%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1622266&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The electoral battleground of Nevada could become the next state to adopt a ranked-choice voting system for future primary and general elections.<\/p>\n<p>Set to appear on the ballot for the upcoming midterm elections, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nvsos.gov\/sos\/home\/showpublisheddocument?id=9919\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">initiative<\/a> \u2014 if successfully passed \u2014 would amend the constitution of Nevada by implementing a ranked-choice voting system for both state and federal primary and general elections, <a href=\"https:\/\/thenevadaindependent.com\/article\/proposed-ballot-question-would-create-open-primaries-ranked-choice-voting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">in which<\/a> primaries \u201cwould be opened up to all voters regardless of political party.\u201d Under such a system, voters would rank their top five preferred primary candidates, with the top five overall vote-getters advancing to the general contest.<\/p>\n<p>In the general election, if a candidate fails to garner \u201can outright majority (more than 50 percent),\u201d the candidate who has the \u201cfewest first-preference votes would be eliminated, with their \u2018votes\u2019 redistributed based on the second preference of those individual ballots.\u201d Such a process \u201cwould continue until the final two candidates, or when one candidate reached a majority.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While largely ignored by America\u2019s corporate press, the ballot initiative to completely overhaul Nevada\u2019s election system has silently been gaining traction among state voters. During the first quarter of 2022, Nevada Voters First, a political action committee devoted to the expansion of ranked-choice voting in the state, and other supporters of the measure raised approximately <a href=\"https:\/\/thenevadaindependent.com\/article\/open-primary-ranked-choice-ballot-measure-raises-2-2-million-in-2022-first-quarter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$2.2 million<\/a> to assist in advancing the passage of the initiative. Moreover, a <a href=\"https:\/\/thenevadaindependent.com\/article\/poll-nevadans-favor-ranked-choice-voting-equal-rights-ballot-questions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">recent survey<\/a> of nearly 1,000 registered voters conducted by The Nevada Independent\u00a0and OH Predictive Insights found growing support among Nevadans for ranked-choice voting, with 42 percent of those surveyed supporting the 2022 ballot initiative and 27 percent opposing. <\/p>\n<p>Most notable in the poll\u2019s findings, however, is that nearly one-third (32 percent) of Nevada voters hold no opinion of the proposed amendment, signaling that a significant segment of the electorate remains seemingly unaware of the complexities associated with ranked-choice voting.<\/p>\n<p>Such sentiments were expressed by Mike Noble, the chief research and managing partner of OH Predictive Insights, who said transitioning from a traditional primary system to a ranked-choice system is like \u201cgoing from algebra to calculus.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEven when Nevada switched from primaries to caucuses, that was a bit of an adjustment,\u201d he <a href=\"https:\/\/thenevadaindependent.com\/article\/poll-nevadans-favor-ranked-choice-voting-equal-rights-ballot-questions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a>. \u201cPrimaries are pretty straightforward compared to ranked-choice voting.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>A Confusing and Chaotic System<\/h2>\n<p>Despite <a href=\"https:\/\/thisisreno.com\/2022\/06\/ranked-choice-voting-advocates-celebrate-state-supreme-court-ruling\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">advocates\u2019 claims<\/a> that ranked-choice voting is better for democracy because it would give voters \u201cmore options\u201d on Election Day, such arguments ignore the extremely confusing nature of the process. While speaking with The Federalist, Zack Smith, a Heritage Foundation legal fellow and manager of the Supreme Court and Appellate Advocacy Program in Heritage\u2019s Meese Center, explained the intricacies of ranked-choice voting and how the process oftentimes \u201cobfuscates the candidates and their position\u201d from voters. <\/p>\n<p>Ranked-choice voting can potentially lead to \u201csomeone getting elected to office that only has a minuscule amount of support from the electorate,\u201d he said. \u201cIf [candidates] have problematic positions, it can make it very easy to hide those [from voters].\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Smith later went on to note the simplicity of traditional primaries with runoff elections, saying they provide candidates \u201cwith clarity\u201d and give \u201cthem an opportunity to meet voters to put forward their policy platforms [and] positions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhether you\u2019re a conservative Republican or liberal Democrat, [ranked-choice voting is] just a very confusing process,\u201d he added. \u201cIt encourages gamesmanship. [Voters find themselves] trying to think through strategic considerations, you know, \u2018Who do I rank second? Who do I rank third? If I rank this person second, can I game the system?&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Concerns over the confusing nature of ranked-choice voting are hardly exclusive to conservatives, however. Since the major push for Nevada to adopt ranked-choice began earlier this year, notable state Democrats have <a href=\"https:\/\/thenevadaindependent.com\/article\/sisolak-rosen-and-other-top-democrats-oppose-ranked-choice-voting-measure\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">come out against<\/a> the ballot initiative, including Gov. Steve Sisolak\u00a0and U.S. Sens.\u00a0Catherine Cortez Masto\u00a0and\u00a0Jacky Rosen.<\/p>\n<p>The proposed ballot measure is \u201ca rushed constitutional change that would make our system more confusing, error-prone and exclusionary,\u201d Sisolak said.<\/p>\n<p>If successfully passed this November, the proposed amendment would make Nevada the third state in the country to implement a ranked-choice election system. In addition to Maine, Alaskans <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Alaska_Ballot_Measure_2,_Top-Four_Ranked-Choice_Voting_and_Campaign_Finance_Laws_Initiative_(2020)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">narrowly passed<\/a> a state constitutional amendment in 2020 that established a top-four ranked-choice voting system for most state and federal elections. Alaska most recently held its <a href=\"https:\/\/alaskapublic.org\/2022\/08\/16\/alaskans-head-to-the-polls-in-states-first-ranked-choice-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">first primary election<\/a> under the new process on Aug. 16, with some votes still <a href=\"https:\/\/alaskapublic.org\/2022\/08\/23\/peltola-gains-in-alaskas-updated-special-us-house-election-results\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">yet to be tabulated<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Several U.S. cities such as Minneapolis and New York have also implemented ranked-choice voting for local races, and both of them have experienced <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/ranked-choice-voting-helped-wreck-minneapolis-11625854937\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">extremely chaotic elections<\/a> as a result. In Minneapolis, where 16 candidates were running to become the city\u2019s next mayor in 2017, it took six rounds of counting and 24 hours to finally declare Democrat Jacob Frey as the winner.<\/p>\n<p>As the Wall Street Journal noted, Frey, who was the \u201cfirst choice of only 25% of voters\u201d in the election, would go on to leave a legacy of ruin during his first term in office, which included \u201cdoing nothing [in May 2020] while rioters burned and looted more than 1,300 buildings\u201d and \u201ccaus[ed] an estimated $500 million of damage\u201d following the death of George Floyd.<\/p>\n<p>In New York City, local elections under ranked-choice voting proved to be even worse, with last year\u2019s Democrat mayoral primary taking 15 days and <a href=\"https:\/\/vote.nyc\/sites\/default\/files\/pdf\/election_results\/2021\/20210622Primary%20Election\/rcv\/DEM%20Mayor%20Citywide.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">nearly 10 rounds<\/a> of voting to determine a winner.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s important that voters are educated and understand many of the problems that come along with ranked-choice voting,\u201d said Smith.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<p>\n  Shawn Fleetwood is a Staff Writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He also serves as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-comments mt-30 mt-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-comments-container d-flex flex-column align-items-center py-30\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"110\" height=\"106\" src=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/fdrlst-mark.svg\" class=\"img-fluid mb-20\" alt=\"The Federalist logo eagle mark\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p>Unlock commenting by joining the Federalist Community.<\/p>\n<p>    <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/plans\/pricing\/\" class=\"btn btn-on-white\">Subscribe<\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The electoral battleground of Nevada could become the next state to adopt a ranked-choice voting system for future primary and general elections. Set to appear on the ballot for the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1622266","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1622266","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1622266"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1622266\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1622266"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1622266"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1622266"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}