As some Ohio cities eye the idea, the state is closer to banning ranked choice voting, an “instant runoff” election method where voters rate their favorite candidates.
The Ohio Senate voted Wednesday afternoon 27-5 to advance Senate Bill 63, in most instances barring electing or eliminating candidates through rounds of vote tabulation. It was reintroduced from last General Assembly by Sens. Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) and Bill DeMora (D-Columbus).
“Really, what it comes down to is it doesn’t do what it markets itself as doing,” Senate President Rob McColley said Wednesday.
Of the nine Democrats in the chamber, five voted against SB 63.
Under it, counties or cities could administer elections with ranked choice voting under home rule, but the state would levy financial penalties on jurisdictions for doing so by prohibiting them from getting Local Government Fund money.
While proponents have said ranked choice voting gives voters more say, opponents generally argue it is confusing and cumbersome both for those administering the elections and those voting in them.
Denise Riley, executive director of Rank the Vote Ohio, said she believes both parties are afraid of their power being diluted, which is why SB 63 saw proponents across the aisle.
“It’s not new, it’s not weird,” Riley said in a March interview. “It’s been around forever. They did it in Cincinnati back when they had to hand count ballots.”
Between the 1910s and the 1960s, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Toledo, Ashtabula and Hamilton used ranked choice voting, though it was overturned in each city, according to Rank the Vote Ohio. Riley likened the method to ordering ice cream.
“I'm not going to go home because they only have chocolate and vanilla, I'm going to figure out what I next want,” she said.
As the chief election official whose office would be tasked with enforcing penalties, Secretary of State Frank LaRose said last Tuesday he’d like to see the effort move forward. LaRose believes the method is confusing to the average voter, he said.
“It’s also a huge workload for the county boards of elections,” LaRose said.
SB 63 now heads to the House.
