Start Spreading the Views: Improving Political Expression and Representation in Local Elections Using Ranked Choice Voting

Hundreds of US cities have switched from single choice to ranked choice voting (RCV) systems. In allowing voters to rank multiple candidates and eliminating fears of wasting votes on less viable candidates, RCV purports to improve both political expression and representation. Realizing this potential, however, depends on voters’ willingness and ability to use their rankings. We assess these outcomes by conducting a survey with an embedded experiment during real-world elections for multiple municipal offices using RCV. We examine whether citizens’ propensity to rank multiple candidates and choose like-minded candidates (spatial voting) vary with the prestige of local offices and in response to endorsements. Political expression and spatial voting are substantially lower in elections for comptroller and city council relative to mayor. Endorsements from unions and issue advocacy groups improve both outcomes for these lower-level offices. Our results highlight differences in the efficacy of RCV across local elections and illustrate how endorsements can help citizens navigate these challenging settings.