The general election is approaching rapidly so, in addition to knowing about the issues, candidates, and campaign details, it’s important to know how our state’s electoral system works, especially because Alaska uses a ranked choice voting system that, while slightly different, it’s easy to understand and allows your voice to be present through all the process.
Here’s how it works: In each election, voters rank candidates in order of preference. You list your top choice as number one, your second choice as number two, and so forth. Once everyone votes, each vote is tallied in a series of rounds. In the first round, only first-choice votes are counted. If a candidate secures more than 50% of the votes (50% plus one), they win and counting stops. If no candidate achieves a majority, the process moves to additional rounds.
In the following round, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. If you have voted for that candidate, your vote gets transferred to your next preferred choice. This process continues through successive rounds until only two candidates remain. The one with most votes then wins. So, in this system, the winner is always someone that is approved by a broad portion of the electorate. Before, a candidate could win with only 30% or 40% of the vote, potentially not reflecting the majority’s opinion. This approach reduces campaign negativity and encourages diverse viewpoints.
Additionally, ranked choice voting allows your preferences to influence the outcome even if your top choice is eliminated. It’s used in all state and federal elections, including for positions such as governor, state legislator, president, senator, and congressman. Therefore, it’s important to review all candidates and decide how you will rank them.
It’s important to remember that you are still casting a single vote, but now it has more details about what you think of all the candidates. Also, you don’t have to rank all candidates—only those you wish to—and you can still vote for candidates outside the list. Be cautious about giving the same ranking to more than one candidate, as those rankings will not be counted.
