RANKED CHOICE VOTING

For the second year in a row, media outlets from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands published at least one piece mentioning RCV! This includes national outlets like PBS NewsHour, CBS News, and The Washington Post, as well as major state newspapers like The Boston Globe and The Detroit News.

Polling by FairVote and SurveyUSA on Joe Biden’s potential replacement as the Democratic presidential nominee – and on Kamala Harris’s choice of running mate – was covered by Newsweek, USA Today, and The Washington Times, and syndicated in local news outlets across the country. 

RCV also earned great coverage beyond traditional news sources. John Oliver endorsed RCV on an episode of Last Week Tonight, and Andrew Yang’s TED Talk on the impact of RCV in Alaska was one of the top 10 most popular TED Talks of 2024. 

In 2024, 10 cities and two states used RCV in their elections, generating significant media attention. Portland, OR used RCV to elect its mayor and City Council for the first time, and Alaska used RCV in a presidential election for the first time. On top of that, Washington, DC voted overwhelmingly in favor of RCV, alongside four other cities. 

Most notably, more voters than ever had the chance to bring RCV to their state elections this year. The Associated Press, The Washington Post, NPR, NBC News, Politico, and other national outlets extensively covered these state ballot initiatives. 

Additionally, an op-ed from FairVote’s own Rob Richie on how Democrats could use RCV to choose a presidential nominee in a brokered convention was re-published in local news outlets from Iowa to Hawaii.

2024 saw a wave of major endorsements for RCV. In addition to an endorsement from Last Week Tonight host John Oliver, elected officials across the political spectrum publicly embraced RCV, from former Republican Representatives Ken Buck (CO) and Denver Riggleman (VA) to Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper (CO) and former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams (GA).

Major newspapers across the country also endorsed RCV this year, including The Washington Post – which called on voters in Washington, DC and across the country to adopt RCV in four separate editorials. The Idaho Statesman, The Chicago Sun-Times, New Jersey’s Star-Ledger, the Anchorage Daily News, and many other local papers also endorsed RCV.

There were many other leaders, organizations, and news outlets that supported RCV this year – too many to list here. Despite their differences, they all believe this reform is an important way to strengthen our democracy.