Ohio State Building. (Photo: Megan Henry, Ohio Capital Journal).
The Ohio Senate on Wednesday voted to ban ranked-choice voting in statewide elections and withhold state funding from governments that try it at the local level. The bill now goes to Gov. Mike DeWine, who welcomed the idea of a ban when asked about it earlier this week.
This is the second Senate vote on this idea. And although two Democrats went from “yes” to “no” this time, the adoption of this solution was never in doubt. It was basic, 24 to 7.
DeWine pointed, like many other lawmakers, to examples of ranking-choices taking days or even weeks.
“You know, one of the things in our system is you have to count pretty quickly, otherwise the public will really get into it,” DeWine said.
“I also think it’s very disruptive to talk to election officials. So, you know, I’ll look into it, but I think there are some pretty good arguments there.”
Meanwhile, supporters of ranked choice argue that these delays are the result of state policies that allow time for mail-in ballots to be delivered, not the actual tabulation of votes.
Notably, Ohio just eliminated the four-day waiting period for mail-in voting.
Rank the Vote Ohio executive director Denise Riley warned last month that threatening local governments amounts to “direct coercion” and is “little likely to be upheld in court.”
Debate on the dance floor
Ohio Senate Bill 63 co-sponsor Ohio State Sen. Theresa Gavarone, R-Bowling Green, dismissed ranked-choice voting as a “confusing and disastrous voting method.”
“(It) will continually eliminate candidates in a series of rounds until one candidate wins a majority, 50% plus one vote,” she said. “Under this election method, voters rank candidates according to their preferences rather than choosing just one.”
Supporters argue that by allowing voters to express multiple preferences, more politicians will see a path to victory and voters will be able to choose from a wider range of candidates.
And theoretically, if being voters’ second, third or fourth choice still has value, candidates who appeal broadly will likely be more successful than those who focus on a partisan base.
Although he voted for SB 63 in Ohio, Sen. Bill Blessing, R-Colerain Twp., said ranked choice supporters have a point.
“The incentives in our current system reward bias,” he said, and there is evidence that ranked choice can reduce this.
“Ranked-choice voting is like a roundabout in that it is unfairly vilified and misunderstood,” Blessing said. “If the goal is traffic safety and efficiency, roundabouts win by a mile. That’s not even up for debate.”
However, if the goal is to reduce bias, Blessing believes there is an even simpler approach: front two or jungle base play.
In Ohio, many more voters are unaffiliated rather than registered with a political party.
As of 2024, registered Republicans and Democrats combined – and then doubled — they are still about a million Ohio voters brief of unaffiliated voters.
“A small fraction is a choice of candidates for everyone,” Blessing said. “Privileging all Ohio voters to choose the top two candidates to face each other in November ensures that Republicans and Democrats will have to appeal to more than just the most partisan elements of their parties.”
SB 63’s second passage through the Senate resulted in little change from the House.
This provision clearly states that eligible candidate petitions are a public record.
The bill’s co-sponsor, Ohio Sen. Bill DeMora of British Columbia, said he was “shocked” to learn that some counties had not yet declared them public and that the amendment “just made things better, I think.”
Meanwhile, two other Democrats have changed their minds on the proposal.
Ohio State Sen. Catherine Ingram, D-Cincinnati, and Ohio Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio voted against the measure, and Antonio took a moment to explain her change of heart.
“Before the bill left the Senate, I hadn’t really heard from anyone in my district what they thought about ranked choice voting,” she said. “I have heard a lot since then.”
She said that since the bill first passed the Senate, she has heard from voters “loud and clear” that they want to at least consider ranked-choice voting in local elections.
“When I first voted for the bill, I didn’t think Ohio was ready for this type of approach,” Antonio said.
“My constituents tell me they are ready for this kind of approach.”
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