On Nov. 5, Americans nationwide will vote in national, state and local elections. San Francisco voters have a unique form of voting: casting ballots using ranked-choice voting. This system allows voters to rank candidates rather than choosing just one.
“If you’re presented with five options for dinner, traditional voting requires you to say ‘I only want this’ while ranked-choice voting allows that if it is your actual preference, it also gives you the option to say ‘I most want this option, but would be happy with this other option and tolerate this third option,’” said Dean of Student ActivitiesSkyler Silverman who implemented ranked-choice voting into student elections at Urban.
Advocates of ranked-choice voting say that it makes elections fairer and advances a broader range of candidates and voter choices. By allowing voters to rank multiple candidates, the system can encourage more positive campaigning. Winners of ranked-choice voting elections often need broad support representing the electorate compared to traditional elections. “The intended consequence of ranked-choice voting is that it produces a more accurate representation of the preferences of the voting body,” Silverman said.
Critics of ranked-choice voting worry that the system can confuse voters and lead to unintended outcomes. “It can be more complicated,” Silverman said. ”Both on the tallying votes side and on the information needed to be an informed voter side.”
Ranked-choice voting has played a major role in the 2024 San Francisco mayoral election. Former Interim Mayor Mark Farrell formed a coalition with fellow candidate Supervisor Ahsha Safaí. “While Ahsha and I do not agree on every issue, we share similar values and the shared belief San Francisco will be stronger without [Mayor] London Breed,” Farrell said, “I’m encouraging all of my supporters and voters across the city of San Francisco to leave London Breed and Aaron Peskin off their ballots.” Whether Farrell and Safaí’s strategy works as of print remains to be seen.
While ranked-choice voting can initially seem counterintuitive, Silverman provided guidance for any Urban students struggling with the voting method. “If you’ve ever been asked to rank a series of things, you understand,” he said. “The only difference between this and traditional [winner takes all voting] is that the old system only lets you indicate one option while also telling you that if the one you pick wasn’t one of the top two that everyone else picked, your preference is irrelevant. Ranked-choice voting is just a much, much better method of ranking things.”
