Debating ranked-choice voting in Vermont

MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) - The debate over ranked-choice voting is back under the Golden Dome in Montpelier.

This past week, Senate lawmakers began exploring setting up the first ranked-choice voting system for the 2024 presidential primary.

Ranked-choice voting allows voters to rank their choices on the ballot and then the bottom candidates from the voter list are eliminated until one of them reaches 50 percent.

A handful of town clerks including Carol Dawes of Barre City, said they have concerns about educating both voters and election workers in time for the 2024 primaries.

“Under the current national political climate, it seems unwise to rush into a change such as this. Would ranked-choice voting be accepted by voters as a transparent process, without adequate training and education?” Dawes questioned.

Vermont Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas has said she supports the system for presidential primaries but Governor Phil Scott has said he is opposed.

The system has been used in Maine, Alaska, and in local elections in Burlington.

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