MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law Friday a bill banning ranked-choice voting in Alabama, lauding the legislation as a tool to ensure “confidence in Alabama elections.”
Sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decator, Senate Bill 186 will prohibit ranked-choice voting in Alabama in local, state and federal elections, and will go into effect on Oct. 1.
A method of voting used for state-wide elections in some states, including Alaska and Maine, ranked-choice voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference, and sometimes includes multiple rounds.
If any one candidate receives more than 50% of first-choice votes, that candidate wins. If no candidate receives more than 50% of first-choice votes, however, the candidate with the fewest first-choice votes is eliminated.
Voters whose first choice had been eliminated would then see their second choice candidate receive their vote, and the process repeats until one candidate receives more than 50%.
The bill made it out of both chambers late in the session, and received some pushback from Democratic lawmakers who argued, given the low voter participation rate in the state, that banning ranked-choice voting was unnecessary and premature.
Republicans, including Rep. Mark Shirey, R-Mobile, who carried the bill in the House, argued that the voting method was complicated and confusing for voters, and that it had no place in Alabama.
Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen largely agreed with that sentiment, and said in a social media post after the bill had passed through the House that ranked-choice voting had no place in the state.
“Ranked-choice voting results in voter confusion, spoiled ballots, delayed election results, and violates the fundamental principle of one-person, one vote,” Allen wrote.
Ivey, after singing the bill into law Friday, shared similar words in condemning the voting method.
“I am proud to sign this bill which takes another step towards ensuring the confidence in our elections,” Ivey said in a statement.
There are even more states that allow local elections in select jurisdictions to use ranked-choice voting, including California, Illinois and Michigan. Some studies have shown that general elections that permit ranked-choice voting saw a 10% increase in voter turnout.
Voter turnout in Alabama has been far below national averages in recent years, with the 2022 midterm elections seeing a 23.4% voter turnout rate, the second-lowest turnout during a midterm election since 2000.