On Election Day 2016 C.E., Maine became the first U.S. state to adopt ranked-choice voting statewide through a direct ballot initiative — a quiet but significant shift in how democracy can work.
What the measure does
- Ranked-choice voting: Voters rank candidates in order of preference rather than selecting just one, allowing ballots to be counted in multiple rounds until a candidate wins a true majority.
- Instant runoff: The process — sometimes called instant runoff voting — eliminates last-place candidates one by one, redistributing their votes until someone clears 50 percent.
- Statewide scope: The new system applies to races for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, governor, state Senate, and state House in Maine.
Why Maine voted for change
The push for ranked-choice voting in Maine had a very specific political origin. Governor Paul LePage won election in 2010 C.E. with just 37 percent of the vote — and again in 2014 C.E. with 48 percent. In a multi-candidate field, a plurality was enough. For many Mainers, that outcome didn’t feel like a majority decision. It felt like a loophole.
Ranked-choice voting closes that loophole. Under the new system, a candidate must earn genuine majority support — not just more votes than anyone else in a crowded race.
The ballot initiative passed with roughly 52 percent of the vote, a slim but clear margin. It was the product of years of grassroots organizing, largely by volunteers and civic groups who believed the mechanics of elections matter as much as the candidates themselves.
A model with deep roots
Ranked-choice voting is not a new idea. Australia has used a version of it for federal elections since 1918 C.E. Ireland uses it for presidential elections. Cities across the U.S. — including San Francisco and Minneapolis — had already adopted it for local races before Maine brought it to the state level.
What made Maine’s vote notable was its scope and method. A statewide ballot initiative, approved by the public directly, covering nearly every major race — that combination was genuinely without precedent in the U.S.
The reform also reflected a broader global conversation about electoral systems. Advocates argue that ranked-choice voting reduces negative campaigning, since candidates benefit from being second-choice picks among their opponents’ supporters. Researchers studying its effects in U.S. cities have found some evidence of more civil campaigns, though the evidence is still accumulating.
Lasting impact
Maine’s vote opened a door. In 2020 C.E., Maine became the first state to use ranked-choice voting in a presidential election. Alaska followed, adopting a similar system in 2020 C.E. and using it in 2022 C.E. New York City introduced ranked-choice voting for local primaries. Dozens of cities and counties across the U.S. have since moved in the same direction.
Beyond geography, Maine’s initiative changed the terms of the debate. Ranked-choice voting shifted from a fringe reform idea to a policy that had been tested, voted on, and put into practice by real people in real elections. That shift in credibility matters enormously in electoral reform conversations.
For advocates of stronger democracy, the 2016 C.E. vote was proof that systemic change — not just candidate change — is something voters will support when given the chance. The National Conference of State Legislatures now tracks ranked-choice voting adoption as an active and growing trend across the country.
Blindspots and limits
Maine’s reform faced immediate legal and legislative pushback. In 2017 C.E., the state legislature voted to repeal ranked-choice voting for state races, citing a provision in the Maine Constitution that references plurality wins — the very thing ranked-choice is designed to fix. Voters overrode that repeal through a second ballot initiative in 2018 C.E., but the episode showed how electoral reform, even when approved by the public, can be undone by the institutions it challenges. Implementation also carries real costs: voter education, updated tabulation systems, and longer vote-counting timelines have all been raised as practical concerns in states considering the switch. Ranked-choice voting is not a complete solution to democratic dysfunction — it is one structural tool among many.
Still, the fact that a small northeastern state with a specific political grievance produced a reform that spread to presidential elections in less than a decade is a remarkable demonstration of how local democratic action can ripple outward. The Pew Research Center found growing — if still divided — public awareness of the method as its use has expanded.
Read more
For more on this story, see: Maine Public
For more from Good News for Humankind, see:
- Global suicide rate has fallen by 40% since 1995
- Renewables now make up at least 49% of global power capacity
- The Good News for Humankind archive on democracy
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