Where US states stand on ranked choice voting ahead of the 3 November midterms

Mixed · 2Ranked choice voting (RCV) has drawn new attention in the 2026 midterms, with Maine and Alaska using it for congressional and state races and 19 states having banned it. 1 2 Mixed · 2Under RCV, voters rank candidates in order of preference and may rank only one. If no candidate wins a majority of first-choice votes, the candidate with the fewest is eliminated and those ballots go to their next choice, repeating until someone has more than 50%. 1 2 Centre · 1Newsweek counts Alaska, Maine and Hawaii as using the system, with Hawaii using it for some statewide elections. It lists 13 more states (California, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia and Washington) that allow it in some localities or certain elections, and says other states have no laws on it. 1

Left · 1Al Jazeera counts only Alaska and Maine as using RCV statewide, and adds that Hawaii uses it for certain special elections, Washington, DC adopted it for federal and local elections from 2026, and Virginia approved legislation expanding it this year. It attributes the figure of an estimated 19 states prohibiting or restricting it to the National Conference of State Legislatures. 3 Left · 1ABC News says 18 state legislatures, including Alabama, Florida and Ohio, passed bans between 2022 and 2026, and Missouri voters approved a ban by ballot measure in 2024. 2 Left · 1On 3 November Alaska voters will decide a ballot question on repealing RCV. A similar 2024 repeal measure lost by 743 votes, or 0.24 percentage points, and Republican leaders including Rep. Nick Begich and Gov. Mike Dunleavy are pushing for repeal this year. 2

Centre · 1Newsweek ties the criticism to Alaska's Senate race, where Democrat Mary Peltola is challenging Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan. Republicans allege Democratic operatives helped recruit a candidate named Dan J. Sullivan to confuse voters. The Department of Justice has sued Alaska over that candidacy, and Dan J. Sullivan has switched from Republican to "undeclared". 1 Left · 2CBS News reports that a federal judge dismissed the Justice Department's lawsuit on Sunday 1 November, finding the federal government had no legal right to sue; the suit had sought to block Alaska officials from certifying the Senate result if Sullivan lost to Peltola, and the Justice Department has said it will appeal. Al Jazeera describes the suit as brought by Trump and says Alaska officials and Democrats were challenging it. 4 3 Left · 2The recruitment allegation traces to a New York Times report that Peltola-aligned operatives helped recruit the second Sullivan, a retired teacher; Peltola has denied involvement, and he has said his candidacy is genuine. The Alaska Supreme Court allowed both Sullivans to stay on the ballot, and the sample ballot labels the senator "Registered Republican" and "Incumbent" while Daniel J. Sullivan has no identifier. In the August primary Peltola took 49.5%, Sen. Sullivan 41.4% and Daniel J. Sullivan 2.5%. 4 3

Left · 1CBS says a count could take weeks if no candidate wins a first-round majority, since Alaska accepts mail ballots up to 10 or 15 days after Election Day and runs ranked tabulation only after the final count; officials are targeting 25 November for certification. 4 Centre · 1President Donald Trump has called RCV a "TOTAL DEMOCRAT SCAM meant to confuse the Voter" and called for Peltola and Dan J. Sullivan to be removed from Alaska's ballot. Vice President JD Vance said he is "not a big fan" and that the person with the most votes should win. 1 Left · 1ABC News reports that Trump made the "Democrat scam" claim at an 14 October Alaska rally without evidence. It also says election data compiled by researchers Ismar Volić and David McCune shows no evidence in any US RCV election that the system benefited one party over another. 2

Left · 1Researchers quoted by ABC say RCV reduces the spoiler effect without eliminating it, and that elections become more competitive and campaigns less negative. They cite the 2022 Alaska special election, which Peltola won over Sarah Palin and Nick Begich, as a rare spoiler case. They also say polarization has fed misinformation and left the pros and cons under-discussed. 2 Left · 1Al Jazeera adds that supporters say RCV frees voters from voting tactically, while critics say it complicates voting and counting and could slow results; it cites a 2025 Political Behavior study suggesting 4.8% of ranked ballots are improperly marked, though not all are invalidated. 3 Mixed · 2According to the Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center, a non-partisan nonprofit, about 10.3 million voters in 14 cities plus Maine and Alaska use RCV, and about 3.9 million will cast an RCV ballot in this year's midterms. Three cities, Honolulu, Irvine (California) and Longmont (Colorado), vote on allowing RCV in local elections. 2 1