Peach Tree Times

Conservative groups are advocating for the Georgia State Senate to pass SB 355, a proposal aimed at prohibiting ranked-choice voting (RCV). This system requires voters to rank their preferred candidates in order of preference, rather than casting a vote for a single candidate. These groups argue that RCV increases the likelihood of voter confusion and disenfranchisement of minority voters, among other issues.

A coalition of conservative organizations — including Restoration of America and the America First Policy Institute — has urged members of the Senate Ethics Committee in Georgia to approve the proposal. In an open letter to the committee, they wrote, "everywhere that ranked-choice voting has been tried, it’s been an unmitigated and un-American disaster with delayed election results, ballots thrown in the trash, voters’ voices silenced, losers winning, and winners losing."

These concerns were reiterated by Gina Swoboda, Executive Director of Voter Reference Foundation, in her written testimony to the Georgia State Senate Ethics Committee. She stated: "We request the Senate pass SB355, thereby protecting the current elections process, in which no ballot is 'exhausted' for failing to 'rank' every candidate, and where no voter is disenfranchised simply by virtue of being unable to keep up with the amount of research and number of votes required to participate in a new system that can lead to a decrease in voter confidence, exhausted voters and thrown out votes."

Federal Newswire reported on a recent study from the Center for Election Confidence indicating that RCV appears more likely than "traditional" forms of voting to disenfranchise minority voters regarding both representation and influence. Nolan McCarty, a professor at Princeton University who conducted this study found that RCV favored majority-group voters over minority-group voters due to high rates of 'ballot exhaustion.' This term refers to when a ballot is no longer counted in later rounds of vote tabulation after all chosen candidates on that ballot have been eliminated.

If passed, SB 355 would prohibit RCV in Georgia for local, state, and federal elections and would repeal any laws conflicting with this ban. The bill is sponsored by Georgia State Senators Randy Robertson (R-Cataula), Max Burns (R-Sylvania), Rick Williams (R-Milledgeville), Jason Abavitarte (R-Dallas), and Greg Dolezal (R-Cumming), as per the Georgia General Assembly's website.

According to Ballotpedia, an election information website, in an RCV system, voters rank candidates for office in order of preference. If a candidate secures a majority of first-preference votes, they win the election. If no candidate achieves a majority, the candidate with the fewest votes in that round is eliminated, and voters’ second preference candidates are counted. This process continues until one candidate receives a majority. Currently, five states — Florida, Idaho, Montana, South Dakota, and Tennessee — have banned this style of voting.