Why Ranked Choice Voting Could Work In Illinois

Iowa voters will head to the polls next week for the primary caucus. Some are still undecided, but what if they didn’t have to choose just one candidate? A group here in Illinois hopes to radically change how voting works in this state.

The first decisions in the 2020 Presidential Elections will be made in six days, in the Iowa Caucuses.

But as many as 60 percent of Iowans say they haven’t fully made up their minds about which Democratic candidate to choose. Illinoisians have more time to decide. Our primaries are seven weeks from today.

But it’s not just the 12 major presidential candidates we’ll likely have to comb through, it’s also Illinois congressional races. 

A whopping 10 candidates from both parties are vying for a nomination to fill Congressman John Shimkus’ soon-to-be vacant seat in Illinois' 15th District.

And some people across the state are mounting primary challenges against incumbents. Organizers with some groups think that there’s a more efficient and equitable way of resolving these contests: by ranking candidates.

Andrew Szilva is a member of FairVote Illinois, and Ruth Greenwood from the national group, Campaign Legal Center.