| Jessi Phillips | WMUK |
In November, Kalamazoo, Royal Oak, and East Lansing approved ranked-choice voting for city elections. Ann Arbor and Ferndale previously passed ranked-choice voting proposals. But the system goes against several Michigan Board of Elections statutes. State Representative Regina Weiss hopes to introduce legislation that would change that. Weiss’s district includes Royal Oak. She says that ranked-choice voting is not explicitly prohibited by Michigan law.
Every day people rank their choices
The group Rank MI Vote was a driving force behind the November proposals. Executive Director Ron Zimmerman said the organization hopes to keep putting ranked-choice voting on the ballot in cities across Michigan. He pushes back against those who claim the system is confusing.
“That’s not the reality where it gets implemented,” he said. “Every day people rank their choices in their own everyday life of doing anything. It’s not that hard to rank your candidate.”
Weiss said she hopes to present the legislation early next year.