Miscellaneous
Ranked-Choice / Instant-Runoff Vote Calculator
Run an instant-runoff (ranked-choice) election. Add candidates, enter ranked ballots, and see which candidate wins through progressive elimination rounds.
Candidates
Ballots (3)
How ranked choice voting works
In ranked choice voting (RCV), voters rank candidates by preference. If no candidate wins a majority (50%+1) of first-choice votes, the last-place candidate is eliminated and those ballots redistribute to their next choice. This repeats until a majority is reached.
Where RCV is used
- Maine and Alaska (US state elections)
- New York City (Democratic primaries)
- Australia (federal elections since 1918)
- Academy Awards (Best Picture since 2009)
Round-by-round example
A simple 4-candidate, 10-ballot election illustrates how RCV works:
| Round | Alice | Bob | Carol | Dave | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | Dave eliminated (1 vote, last place) |
| 2 | 4 | 4 | 2 | — | Carol eliminated (2 votes, last place) |
| 3 | 5 | 5 | — | — | Alice wins tiebreak (or further criteria) |
Condorcet criterion
A Condorcet winner is a candidate who would beat every other candidate in a one-on-one matchup. RCV does not always elect the Condorcet winner — if voters rank third-party candidates high and transfer votes non-intuitively, the Condorcet winner can be eliminated early. This is a documented theoretical limitation (the “center squeeze” effect) of RCV in races with more than three viable candidates.
Alternatives to RCV
- STAR voting (Score Then Automatic Runoff): rate all candidates 0–5; the two highest-rated go to a runoff decided by who was preferred by more voters.
- Approval voting: vote for as many candidates as you approve of; most approvals wins. Simple but loses preference intensity.
- Borda count: assign points based on rank position (last place = 1, second to last = 2, etc.); total points determine the winner.