We’re about a month away from the 2025 municipal general election, and some cities in Salt Lake County are using ranked choice voting. Utah has been testing ranked choice voting as part of a statewide pilot program, but here’s a quick refresher on how it works.
🗳️ What Is Ranked Choice Voting?
A lot like it sounds, this system lets voters rank candidates in order of preference instead of choosing just one. If a candidate earns more than 50% of first-choice votes, they win outright.
If not, it gets a little more tricky: The candidate with the fewest first-choice votes is eliminated, and those ballots are redistributed to whoever was voters’ next preferred candidate. This process continues until someone secures a majority.
🗳️ Which SLCo Cities Opted into Ranked Choice Voting?
Note: Millcreek originally opted into ranked choice voting, but they won’t be using it for their municipal election since only two candidates filed in each district.
🗳️ Good To Know
- If a candidate doesn’t speak to you, don’t rank them! You don’t have to rank every candidate.
- Avoid marking the same candidate for every choice or selecting multiple candidates under the same rank — your vote won’t count. If you’re a visual learner, this video is helpful!
- Utah’s ranked choice voting pilot program is set to expire in 2026. After that, its future is uncertain.
