Support for Ranked Choice Voting and Partisanship of Voters: Results from a National Survey Experiment

Kimball, David C.; Anthony, Joseph; Scott, Jamil; Santucci, Jack

doi:10.2139/ssrn.4015904

Cited by 3 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…The racial impacts of RCV have largely been underresearched (Anthony et al. 2021). Considering New York City's diverse population and a large exit poll, we are able to help shed some light on how minorities have participated in this new electoral system.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, Anthony et al. (2021) demonstrate that minority voters are less supportive of RCV than white voters based solely on the explanation of the vote transfer property associated with RCV. However, these voters are more supportive of RCV when they learn that RCV helps elect women and candidates of color.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is also some research that shows that racial and gender discrepancies can be mitigated with voter education efforts (Kimball and Anthony 2016; Kimball and Anthony 2018)—especially when the representation benefits for women and voters of color are made explicit (Anthony et al. 2021). The biggest potential cause for concern is found when we look at age.…”

Section: What We Currently Know About Rcvmentioning

confidence: 99%

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New or “normal” election? Understanding ranking activity in New York City's first ranked choice voting election

Wendland

Carman

2023

Social Science Quarterly

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Objective: Ranked choice voting [RCV] is currently seeing a spike in interest and is expanding in practice throughout the United States. However, the impacts and effects of RCV in the United States are not well understood and neither are the driving forces behind voters. engagement with it. This article explores what drives a voter's willingness to engage with ranking and to what extent. Methods: We use New York City exit poll data to analyze what increased the likelihood of voters to both participate in any ranking activity whatsoever as well as what drove voters to rank several candidates. Using both logistic and ordinal logistic regression we analyze how a voter's engagement with ranking is impacted by their socioeconomic background, their understanding of RCV, and campaign-centered variables.Results: Our results show that wealthier, better educated, white voters who perceived a more positive campaign environment were more likely to engage in ranking. Gender, education, income, campaign tone, and being asked to rank a candidate as second or third are shown to be predictors of a voter's propensity to rank several candidates. Conclusion: Voters engage with RCV when they are provided with information on how RCV works and the benefits that come with it. Voters who perceive a more positive campaign environment and are explicitly asked by candidates to include them in their rankings are more likely to maximize their ranking activity.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: What We Currently Know About Rcvmentioning

confidence: 99%

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New or “normal” election? Understanding ranking activity in New York City's first ranked choice voting election

Wendland

Carman

2023

Social Science Quarterly

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“…Through this positive behavior and reported experience, RCV may produce more satisfied voters than the current first-past-the-post system. Taking those arguments into account, RCV elections encourage civility between candidates, reduces concerns over “wasted votes” for candidates who are not seen as potential winners, may reduce racial and ethnic divisions, and since negative campaigns are discouraged, it could attract more voters and help to make voters feel better about the electoral system (Kimball & Anthony, 2016, p. 3).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Reflecting increased interest and adoption of RCV, researchers have begun to explore the causes and consequences of adopting an RCV system in America. Researchers have found that, at least for local elections, RCV decreases negative campaigning as candidates hope to position themselves to be a supporter of another candidate’s second choice (Kimball & Anthony, 2016). Due to RCV’s relatively novel status in modern American elections, a number of research questions remain incompletely researched.…”

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confidence: 99%

Ranked-Choice Voting and Democratic Attitudes

Gutiérrez

Simmons

Transue

2022

American Politics Research

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Ranked-Choice voting is an electoral system that has become a subject of analysis after its implementation across multiple municipalities and two states. An electoral system can affect several aspects of the election, including how voters perceive the system. Our research addresses the impact of RCV on voters’ attitudes towards democracy. In this study, we develop a theory of why ranked-choice voting will increase support for democracy and candidates, even if their preferred choice does not win. With a survey experiment, we find some support for the claim that participating in an RCV election affects how respondents perceive democracy. With the ongoing polarization and partisanship, RCV may provide an avenue for improving assessments and attitudes towards democracy.

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Come‐from‐behind victories under ranked‐choice voting and runoff: The impact on voter satisfaction

Cerrone

McClintock

2023

Politics & Policy

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Both ranked‐choice voting (RCV) and runoff seek to prevent the election of candidates with only minority support by enabling more broadly approved rivals to win through come‐from‐behind victories (CFBVs). Although CFBVs are intrinsic to RCV and runoff, they have received little scholarly attention. This study suggests that, amid voters' status quo bias, CFBVs provoke dissatisfaction. In a survey experiment fielded on U.S. voters, CFBVs under RCV significantly reduced satisfaction, while there was a weaker negative effect under runoff. Similarly, RCV was repealed or faced a visible repeal attempt in the vast majority of U.S. jurisdictions that experienced a CFBV in the first or second use of the rule. This was not the case for runoff. We encourage greater voter education, including regarding the rationale for and mechanics of CFBVs under RCV as well as consideration of runoff and other rules that encourage the election of candidates with majority support.Related ArticlesMcCarthy, Devin, and Jack Santucci. 2021. “Ranked Choice Voting as a Generational Issue in Modern American Politics.” Politics & Policy 49(1): 33–60. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12390.Nielson, Lindsay. 2017. “Ranked Choice Voting and Attitudes toward Democracy in the United States: Results from a Survey Experiment.” Politics & Policy 45(4): 535–70. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12212.Stiers, Dieter. 2019. “Static and Dynamic Models of Retrospective Voting: A Clarification and Application to the Individual Level.” Politics & Policy 47(5): 859–76. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12324.

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Support for Ranked Choice Voting and Partisanship of Voters: Results from a National Survey Experiment

Cited by 3 publications

References 13 publications

New or “normal” election? Understanding ranking activity in New York City's first ranked choice voting election

New or “normal” election? Understanding ranking activity in New York City's first ranked choice voting election

Ranked-Choice Voting and Democratic Attitudes

Come‐from‐behind victories under ranked‐choice voting and runoff: The impact on voter satisfaction

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