Research

We analyzed every California primary from 2012 to 2024. Top-two keeps shutting out voters, women, and candidates of color. Top Five + RCV fixes it.

A new assessment from the Ranked Choice Voting Resource Center reveals that California is well-positioned to implement ranked choice voting (RCV) statewide, with 98% of counties already using RCV-capable voting equipment.​ Current State of RCV Readiness The comprehensive 2025 assessment categorizes California as "Prepping for RCV," indicating that while substantial progress has been made, some work remains before the state is fully ready for statewide implementation. Current

Santa Clara County's December 30, 2025 assessor runoff cost an estimated $13.1 million, turnout fell 53% from the first round, and the winner got fewer total votes than in the initial election. FairVote argues ranked choice voting would avoid costly runoffs like this by finding a majority winner in a single election. The county is well positioned to switch, with Measure F's 1998 authorization, compatible voting machines bought in 2019, and AB 1227 enabling the change. Read th

The Institute for Mathematics and Democracy has released what may be the most comprehensive empirical study of ranked choice voting to date, analyzing nearly 4,000 real ranked-ballot elections and more than 60 million simulated ones. Its 66-page report concludes that ranked choice methods outperform first-past-the-post elections on nearly every measure of democratic fairness. Read IVN's coverage for more details, or download the full report.

A study in the Journal of Election Administration, Research & Practice examines how Oakland fixed the higher-than-usual ballot error rate in its November 2024 ranked choice election. After improvements to ballot design and voter guidance, Oakland's April 2025 special election ran smoothly, and the overvote rate fell to under a quarter of the 2024 level. In that election, 99.6% of voters cast valid ballots. Read the full study, starting on page 29 of the journal issue.

In a 2021 study, researchers from the RCV Resource Center, University of California, Davis, the University of Iowa, and Western Washington University examined voting behavior in over 10,000 cities. Controlling for various factors, they discovered that people in jurisdictions with RCV were more likely to vote. Voter participation in RCV areas was 12.8%, compared to 10.6% nationally—a 17% increase. This increase is notable, considering the 24% difference in voter participation

A new EMC Research poll finds that 64% of likely 2024 voters in Santa Clara County support using Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) in countywide and local elections. This represents significant growth in support since 54% of county voters voted for RCV in county elections by approving Measure F in 1998. Read the poll memo Even before hearing any explanation of Ranked Choice Voting, 56% of poll respondents supported using RCV to elect countywide officials like the Board of Supervisor

Ranked choice voting (RCV) has measurable positive impacts for voters and candidates of color, a new FairVote report finds. The report examines 448 ranked choice voting elections across 20 years – a testament to the staggering growth this movement has seen over the last two decades. Key findings from the report include: Candidates of color benefit from the RCV counting process, gaining more support as lower-performing candidates are eliminated. RCV allows several candidates o

New FairVote research finds that turnout in Sacramento's primaries is much lower than in its general elections, and the primary electorate underrepresents young voters and renters. FairVote says Sacramento could fix this by consolidating its elections into a single high-turnout contest with ranked choice voting, as other California cities have. Better Ballot Sacramento is leading the local effort. Read the full research at FairVote, and learn more at Better Ballot Sacramento.

A July 2023 FM3 Research poll of 826 likely Los Angeles voters found 71% support ranked choice voting to elect City officials — a finding that signals broad, durable appetite for election reform in LA.​ The survey, conducted July 15–23, 2023, tested RCV both with a simple description ("giving voters the option to rank candidates in order of preference") and a more detailed explanation of how votes transfer when a top candidate doesn't win a majority. Support held at 71% in bo

Stanford's America in One Room: Democratic Reform project polled about 600 Americans before and after they deliberated on reforms like voter access, election administration, and Supreme Court reform, and found movement toward bipartisan agreement on many contentious issues. According to Stanford Professor Larry Diamond, one of the biggest takeaways was consistent majority support for ranked choice voting. After deliberating, majorities backed RCV for local, state, and nationa

Key Findings from a report by FairVote & RepresentWomen published in 2016: More women and people of color in elected office. Since the introduction of RCV, women have won more than 40% of all contests, women of color have won almost a quarter of all contests and people of color have won 60 percent. People of color now hold 13 of the 18 seats in San Francisco elected by RCV, which is up from eight seats before RCV was adopted (although down from 15 of 18 seats after the 2010 R