In the April 5 edition of the Sunday Telegram, Richard Flowerdew, a well-credentialed person, had published a misleading op-ed on ranked choice voting (RCV). While including lots of math and some unnecessary information, he omitted the most important point of RCV. 

In elections with three candidates, each voter marks their first and second choices. Every first choice vote is counted, no voter — no ballot, is ignored. If a majority is not reached by any candidate, and a voter’s first choice does not get enough votes to win further counts, that voter’s first choice is eliminated, and their second choice is then counted. The candidate who has no chance of winning is eliminated, but the ballot is not eliminated — unless the voter chooses only one candidate, who receives too few votes ever to win. In the next round, the voter’s second choice is added to the votes of their second-choice candidate. The winner is either the first or second choice of the majority of votes.

I have a friend who was elated to be able to vote for her favorite candidate first, and then to choose a candidate in a major party second. Her first choice had a chance to win, but lost in the first round. Her second choice vote was added to her second choice’s total.

To explain excluding some RCV ballots, without mentioning the opportunity described here, does readers a great disservice.

Victoria Adams
Kennebunk