Chambana Sun

State Rep. Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville) has come out against legislation that would allow for ranked-choice voting (RCV) throughout Illinois.

Halbrook opined it is a complex process and a crucial issue relative to the supreme law of the country.

“I am completely opposed to ranked-choice voting,” Halbrook told Chambana Sun. “There is no question that the far left wants to start with primary voting and eventually move to make this convoluted voting system the norm for our general elections. Ranked-choice voting represents a significant threat to our Constitutional Republic.” 

Two bills filed in February are slowly making their way to the General Assembly. Halbrook said "the legislation has stalled but I fully expect it to continue to be an issue moving forward. I will continue to work to stop it.”

“Our electoral system is based on the idea of “One Person – One Vote,” he added. "It is a system that has worked well for a long time. I see no reason to change it. The idea that votes should count for someone who is a second or third choice is not a fair way of electing anyone to office nor is it a very practical way of structuring our government. Do we really want everyone’s second or third choice to be the winner in our elections?”  

Bills under consideration are HB2807, which creates the system for presidential elections, and HB3749, which creates the system for municipal elections.

“Creates the Ranked Choice Voting for Presidential Primaries Act. Provides that any State-administered primary election for the President of the United States shall be conducted using ranked choice voting,” HB2807's synopsis reads. “Sets forth provisions concerning form of ballot, tabulation, inactive ballots and undervotes, and ties for ranked choice voting. Provides that at least 150 days before the date of the presidential primary election, the State committee of each political party that intends to use the State-administered presidential primary in its nomination process shall inform the State Board of Elections in writing of its intention. Provides that the State committee’s written notice shall indicate whether the party prefers tabulation to occur on a winner-take-all basis or on a proportional basis.” 

Ranked-choice voting, also known as instant runoff voting, would create an open primary in which voters are allowed to rank the candidates in the order of favor. If no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote as the first choice the vote then goes through rounds in which low-count vote-getters are eliminated until candidates are chosen based on their ranking in the balloting process. 

Ballotpedia noted, “If a candidate wins a majority of first-preference votes, he or she is declared the winner." However, If none of the candidates win a majority of first-preference votes, "the candidate with the fewest first-preference votes is eliminated. First-preference votes cast for the failed candidate are eliminated, lifting the next-preference choices indicated on those ballots. A new tally is conducted to determine whether any candidate has won a majority of the adjusted votes."

The Illinois Opportunity Project’s Andy Bakker told WJBC the legislation will have a detrimental effect on the state’s election process. According to Bakker RCV is a ploy to "disconnect elections from issues and allows candidates with marginal support to win.” 

The introduction of ranked-choice voting would require new voting systems throughout the state as well. Boone County Clerk Julie Bliss told legislators debating the bill in committee that expense and funding are issues that will be raised to the lawmakers by all local election authorities, Capitol News Illinois reported.