Ranked Choice Voting

What is RCV in general?

Ranked choice voting, also known as instant run-off voting or a single transferrable vote, allows voters to rank multiple candidates for the same office in order of their personal preference.

How does RCV work in general?

Under RCV, in general, voters cast a single ballot and rank candidates in the order they prefer (first choice, second choice, third choice, and so on). Voters’ first choices are then counted. If a candidate for an office with one seat to be elected receives a majority of first-choice votes, meaning more than 50%, that candidate wins. If no candidate has a majority of first-choice votes, the race is decided by an “instant runoff.” The number of votes needed to win election for an office with multiple seats to be elected depends on the number of open seats. In the instant runoff process, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and voters who picked that candidate as their first choice will have their vote moved to their second choice automatically and the vote counting process is repeated. For an office with one seat to be elected, this elimination and vote counting process continues until a candidate has over 50% of the vote and wins the election.

Click here for a brief video from FairVote Illinois explaining RCV.

Is the referendum binding or advisory?

The referendum is binding.

Which Village of Oak Park offices would be elected by RCV?

The referendum proposes that its version of RCV apply to the election of candidates to the offices of Village President and Trustee, but not Village Clerk. It would also not apply to other offices such as board of education members, park district commissioners, township trustees, county commissioners, or other State or federal offices.

For Village President, a candidate who receives 50% plus one of first rankings, and any candidate for Village Board Trustee who receives 25% plus one of first rankings, will be elected. If no candidate for Village President or Trustee passes their respective threshold of first rankings, the referendum proposes that the candidate for each office with the fewest total votes is eliminated, that each voter’s vote for the eliminated candidate, if any, is transferred to their next-ranked candidate for that office who has not been eliminated, and the vote thresholds are counted again. The referendum proposes that this process repeat until candidates for Village President and Trustee surpass their respective vote thresholds for election.

When would RCV begin in Oak Park?

The referendum proposes that its version of RCV be implemented beginning with the April 2027 consolidated election, which will have open seats for Village Trustee. RCV would also be used to elect Village Trustees and the Village President going forward, including at the April 2029 consolidated election.

May I vote for only one candidate?

Yes, the version of RCV proposed in the referendum does not require that voters rank all candidates. A voter may select just one candidate as their preferred choice and choose to not rank additional candidates.

Does RCV mean you get to vote more than once or that you get more than one vote?

No, the version of RCV proposed in the referendum does not allow for more than one vote per voter. Like the current majority vote system, voters would have one vote per open office. The difference is that voters would be able to rank their choices rather than only selecting their first choice.

Can I vote for a write-in candidate?

Yes, the version of RCV proposed in the referendum allows for write-in candidates. A voter may write in a declared write-in candidate’s name and rank them in the same manner as any candidate whose name is printed on the RCV ballot.

Where is RCV currently used?

Locally, Evanston voters approved a referendum to implement RCV in 2022 to begin with the April 2025 consolidated election. The Cook County Clerk indicated that it will not be implementing that procedure because of limitations in State law and with voting machine technology. A lawsuit was filed requesting a court order requiring the County Clerk to implement the Evanston RCV system. The lawsuit was dismissed in November 2024, with the court determining that RCV is prohibited by State law and Evanston’s referendum question was not properly phrased.

Nationally, RCV is used in Alaska and Maine, as well as several municipal jurisdictions, including Minneapolis, New York City, and San Francisco.

How is the State of Illinois addressing RCV?

On August 4, 2023, Public Act 103-467 became law, which requires the State of Illinois to study whether ranked choice voting is a viable election system in the State. A Task Force was established and initially charged with submitting a report on RCV by July 1, 2024. In November 2023, however, the deadline was extended to June 30, 2025. No report has been submitted to date.

Shall the Village of Oak Park elect its President and Village Board of Trustees by “Ranked Choice Voting?”

“Ranked Choice Voting” provides each voter with one vote and allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference to maximize the power of their vote. This method of voting would be used to rank candidates for President and Village Board. If approved, the following rules shall apply beginning with the April 2027 consolidated election: (1) voters shall vote by ranking one or more candidates up to the number of candidates in the race (the number “1” is the highest ranking, followed by “2” then “3” and so on); (2) a candidate for President who receives 50% plus one of first rankings and any candidate for Village Board Trustee who receives 25% plus one of first rankings shall be elected; (3) in the event that the President and/or all three Village Board Trustees are not elected by first rankings, tabulation for the unelected offices proceeds as follows: (a) for any elected Village Board Trustee who receives more votes than needed to win a seat, a part of each vote received by that candidate shall be transferred to each ballot's next-ranked candidate who has not yet been eliminated, where the part of the vote to be transferred is the number of surplus votes received by that candidate above the threshold needed to win a seat divided by the total votes for that elected Trustee (the fraction of the candidate's votes that were in surplus of the number needed to win a seat that would be wasted if not transferred); (b) any candidate for Village Board Trustee who receives 25% of the vote plus one after this transfer is elected, and, pursuant to step (a), a part of each vote in surplus of 25% plus one is transferred to the next highest-ranked candidate who has not yet been eliminated; (c) if there are no surplus votes to transfer and all seats are not filled, the candidate with the fewest total votes is eliminated, and votes for the eliminated candidate are counted for each ballot’s next-ranked candidate who has not been eliminated; (d) steps (a) - (c) shall continue until a candidate for President is elected with 50% of the vote plus one and three Village Board Trustees are elected with 25% of the vote plus one. Ranked Choice Voting eliminate a primary election for President and Village Board of Trustees. In the event of a Village Board vacancy, Ranked Choice Voting shall be used, and the percentage required for a candidate to be elected shall be based on the number of vacancies. In the event a voter “overvotes” by ranking multiple candidates at the same ranking, their vote shall be counted up to the overvote. For all declared write-in candidate(s), the ballot shall include a write-in line, and voters may write in a candidate's name and rank that candidate in the same manner as a candidate whose name is printed on the ballot. The election authority for Oak Park shall design and print ballots that allow Ranked Choice Voting and program electronic voting machines to enable Ranked Choice Voting. [ ] Yes [ ] No