Oklahoma’s Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed legislation on Wednesday prohibiting the use of ranked-choice voting in elections.
HB 3156 stipulates that “[n]o election conducted by the State Election Board, a county election board, or any municipality authorized to conduct elections in Oklahoma shall use ranked choice voting, ranked voting, proportional ranked voting, preferential voting, or instant runoff voting.” The measure passed in a 63-16 vote, with Republican Rep. Marcus McEntire and 15 Democrats opposing.
The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration.
Under RCV, voters rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of first-choice votes in the first round of voting, the last-place finisher is eliminated, and his votes are reallocated to the voter’s second-choice candidate. This process continues until one candidate receives a majority of votes.
HB 3156 would additionally nullify any “existing or future” ordinance approved by a local government authorizing the use of ranked-choice voting. Elections conducted using the system would also be moot.
Should a locality violate that provision, the secretary of the Oklahoma Elections Board would have the authority to “bring a civil action in an appropriate court for such declaratory or injunctive relief as is necessary” to enforce the law. Oklahoma’s Senate president pro tempore and House speaker may also do so “jointly.”
While no Oklahoma locality currently uses RCV for elections, according to Oklahoma Watch, bill sponsor and Republican Rep. Eric Roberts previously said HB 3156 is necessary to “preserve the simplicity and
