One Vote One Choice Act Aims to Ban Ranked-Choice Voting in Federal Elections

This bill, titled the "One Vote One Choice Act," proposes a straightforward change to federal elections: it prohibits states from using ranked-choice voting (RCV) for electing the President, Vice President, Senators, or Representatives. The legislation explicitly amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to enforce this ban, which would take effect for any federal elections held on or after the day the bill becomes law.

Unpacking Ranked-Choice Voting

First off, what is ranked-choice voting? Instead of picking just one candidate, RCV lets you rank them in order of preference (1st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd, and so on). If no candidate gets over 50% of first-choice votes, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. If your top choice gets knocked out, your vote automatically goes to your next highest-ranked choice still in the running. This continues until one candidate secures a majority.

One Federal Standard: The Impact

The core of this bill (Section 2) is the mandate against RCV for federal races. States that currently use or are considering RCV for congressional or presidential elections would have to switch back to traditional single-choice voting for those specific contests. Think places like Alaska or Maine, which have implemented RCV in various forms – they'd need separate rules or ballots for federal versus state/local races if they wanted to keep RCV locally.

The stated goal might be simplifying the ballot box nationwide, ensuring a uniform voting method for federal offices. However, it directly overrides state decisions on election administration, limiting the options available to voters and state legislatures who might see benefits in RCV, such as potentially reducing political polarization or ensuring winners have broader support.

What This Means for Voters and States

For voters in states currently using RCV for federal elections, this means a return to the 'pick one' ballot format. For states considering RCV, this bill shuts the door on that option for federal races. While proponents might argue this creates consistency, it also represents a significant federal intervention into state election procedures, raising questions about states' rights to innovate and manage their own voting systems based on local preferences. It essentially standardizes the federal voting method, removing the flexibility for states to experiment with systems like RCV for electing national representatives.