Forum, What is Ranked-Choice Voting?
Chris Wiggins, a League of Women Voters member from Oakland County will discuss some possible problems with Michigan’s current election system, describe what nonpartisan primaries are and explain ranked-choice voting, a system that allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference. Chris will also talk about a proposed statewide ballot measure to adopt ranked-choice voting for all state and federal elections. As of February 2024, ranked-choice voting was used for local elections in 45 U.S. cities. In Michigan, voters in East Lansing, Royal Oak, Kalamazoo, Ann Arbor and Ferndale have passed ballot initiatives to change the cities’ voting systems to ranked-choice voting but have been unable to implement because of restrictions in Michigan laws. Wiggins is an Air Force brat who grew up all over—in Michigan, New York, Mississippi, Germany, Alaska and Illinois. Since 1970, he has lived in Michigan. He has worked as a programmer, lawyer, technical consultant, contract negotiator, contract manager and third-party risk manager during the COVID pandemic. After retiring, Chris became a League of Women Voters member, which inspired him to research nonpartisan primaries and ranked-choice voting.