DC begins mailing primary ballots ahead of first ranked choice election

DC begins mailing primary ballots ahead of first ranked choice election

The D.C. Board of Elections began mailing ballots Monday for the District’s mayoral primary, the first election in city history to use ranked choice voting. FOX 5 D.C.'s Tom Fitzgerald has the latest. 

WASHINGTON - The D.C. Board of Elections began mailing ballots Monday for the District’s mayoral primary, the first election in city history to use ranked choice voting.

The voting system was approved by voters in 2024 through Initiative 83, which passed with 73% support citywide.

Dig deeper:

Under the new system, voters can rank up to five candidates in order of preference instead of choosing just one. If no candidate wins a majority of first-choice votes, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. Ballots cast for that candidate are then redistributed based on voters’ next-ranked choices. The process repeats until one candidate earns a majority.

During a recent town hall, Executive Director of the D.C. Board of Elections Monica Holman Evans reminded voters that ranking the same candidate in all five spots does not give that candidate an advantage.

"That first column ranking will count, but we’ll only move to your second column ranking if your candidate comes off of the ballot," she said.

What they're saying:

Some voters said they support the new system and hope it leads to broader voter representation in crowded races.

(Photo By Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

"Sometimes we have primary elections where there’s 8 to 10 candidates and then one person wins with 23% of the vote," one voter told FOX 5 D.C. 

Several mayoral candidates have voiced support for the new voting process while encouraging voters to learn how the system works, as well. 

"We’ve been telling our supporters to rank candidates that you support and that share your values, and our hope is that they rank me first for mayor," D.C. mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George said. 

Candidate Kenyan McDuffie said campaigns are focused on voter education ahead of the election.

"We’re educating voters because we want to make sure that, when we think about implementing something as big a change as this, you are maximizing voter understanding," he said. 

What's next:

Early voting in the DC primary runs from June 8 through June 14.

Election Day is June 16.