Ranked-choice Voting

In the 2020 general election, Bloomington voters approved adopting Ranked Choice Voting to elect the Mayor and City Council members. The vote was 51.2% voting YES and 48.8% voting NO.

The City Council is expected to consider the necessary administrative rules for implementing Ranked Choice Voting in the first Quarter of 2021. Staff will provide voter education in advance of the November 2021 City Council election. This election will be the first time Ranked Choice Voting will be used in Bloomington.

More information will be available at blm.mn/vote as the 2021 election approaches.

You can ask questions about Ranked Choice Voting at Let's Talk Bloomington.

What is ranked-choice voting?

Sometimes referred to as “instant runoff voting” or “preferential voting,” ranked-choice voting is a process that allows voters to rank their choices for each office. 

First choice votes are counted. If no candidate has a majority of the votes (more than 50%), the candidate with the least number of first-choice votes is eliminated. Voters who picked the eliminated candidate as their first choice have their second-choice vote counted instead. This process repeats until one candidate has a majority.

Where is ranked-choice voting currently used?

In Minnesota, the cities of Minneapolis, St. Paul and St. Louis Park currently use ranked-choice voting for municipal elections. It is also used in various other jurisdictions around the country.

When will ranked-choice voting be used?

Ranked-choice voting will be used for municipal elections, starting in November 2021.

Ranked-choice voting will be used for municipal elections only. Ranked-choice voting cannot be used for federal, state, county or school board elections.

Bloomington Public Schools (BPS) also holds elections in the odd-numbered years. What impact will there be on BPS?

There will be no impact on Bloomington Public Schools or the election of School Board members. School Board seats will continue to be on the ballot for the General Election in November of odd-numbered years and would continue to use single-choice plurality voting, as is used today.  (Ranked-choice voting may be used only for municipal elections.  State law does not allow its use for federal, state, county or school board elections.) 

The School District does not currently hold a Primary Election for School Board seats, therefore the elimination of the Primary in odd-numbered years would have no impact on the District.

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