Ranked-Choice Voting Was a Bad Choice

Poor results aren’t always enough to halt a bad political experiment, so credit a Virginia county board for heeding the evidence on ranked-choice voting. This newfangled electoral system is all the rage among progressive reformers, but less beloved by voters. After trying it once, Arlington County did a fast reversal.

The county board this month decided to return to ordinary, plurality voting for its November general election. “This isn’t ‘no’ forever,” board vice chair Libby Garvey said at the meeting. But “there’s real ramifications we haven’t wrestled with.” The same board adopted ranked choice last December, and its first deployment was the county’s Democratic primary this June.

One cause for reflection might be the awkward results. With six people running, the two primary winners were Susan Cunningham and Maureen Coffey. They finished first and third in the initial ranked-choice round. But No. 2, Natalie Roy, was knocked out after five rounds of counting, as less-popular candidates were eliminated and their supporters were reshuffled to second, third or fourth favorites.

Ranked-choice proponents defend this type of outcome as a consensus choice, while many voters scratch their temples as returns come in. The Arlington primary added a further complication, known as proportional ranked choice. Because these elections have two or more winners, candidates who have already cleared a victory threshold also have their excess votes reallocated.

If you’re confused, you’re in good company. “Maybe I don’t completely understand it,” Ms. Garvey said at the meeting. “I do want to know how my vote counts.” Frank Lusby, who leads the county GOP’s election-integrity team, added that the complexity might give citizens a reason to doubt the outcome of a close race.

Board members and other attendees reported a lack of familiarity with ranked choice, but not for lack of effort. The county did an outreach campaign before it adopted the system, including a mock election and public Q&A. Arlington was the first Virginia county to adopt ranked choice, and its change of course should give enthusiasts pause. Elections are subject to enough needless distrust lately, without making them more opaque and less intuitive.