Does Ranked Choice Voting Affect Turnout?: An Examination of US Mayoral Elections

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dc.contributorMitchell, Christopher
dc.contributorSurprise, Kevin
dc.contributor.advisorHilton, Adam
dc.contributor.authorRapoport, Luz
dc.date.accessioned2025-07-08T17:44:03Z
dc.date.available2025-07-08T17:44:03Z
dc.date.gradyear2025
dc.date.issued2025-07-08
dc.description.abstractHow does the way we vote affect democratic participation? The goal of my thesis is to determine the effects of the adoption of Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) by looking at voter turnout across the United States. Whereas most people recognize what is called a Single Member Plurality system, 2 states, 3 counties, and 47 cities have established the use of Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) (FairVote, n.d.). Based on previous literature, my initial hypothesis was that turnout is affected by RCV, whether positively or negatively. However, I will demonstrate via my findings that, in the aggregate, the usage of RCV does not significantly increase voter turnout. I used local and county level electoral data, including Voter Registered Population (VRP) and votes cast to calculate voter turnout and its statistical correlation to the usage of RCV. This answer is demonstrated through a quantitative, differences-in-differences analysis of turnout in these localities in comparison to others that use a plurality electoral system. More research should be conducted on this specific question, as case studies and higher implementation rates could provide different results.
dc.description.sponsorshipPolitics
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10166/6752
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.rights.restrictedpublic
dc.subjectElections
dc.subjectRanked Choice Voting
dc.subjectUnited Stated
dc.subjectRCV
dc.subjectElectoral systems
dc.subjectPolitics
dc.subjectQuantitative
dc.titleDoes Ranked Choice Voting Affect Turnout?: An Examination of US Mayoral Elections
dc.typeThesis
mhc.degreeUndergraduate
mhc.institutionMount Holyoke College

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