H.4022

Introduced by Neal Collins (R-5) and Dr. Jermaine Johnson (D-70)

The current goal is to get this bill a hearing before the Judiciary Committee.

To do this, we need you to contact the leaders of the Judiciary Committee:

Committee Chair

Representative Wm. Weston J. Newton (R-120)

Phone: (803) 734-3120

Send him a message

First Vice Chair

Representative Wallace H. "Jay" Jordan, Jr (R-63)

Phone: (803) 734-3114

Send him a message

Second Vice Chair

Representative John Richard C. King (D-49)

Phone: (803) 212-6873

Send him a message

When contacting, please include this message:

"

Thank you for taking the time to review my request today. I am a part of a coalition of 12 organizations representing thousands of South Carolinians. Runoff elections are costly and under attended. There is a bipartisan bill that has been introduced to the House (H.4022) that would give the option to municipalities to implement a better process to run their elections. Instant runoff voting would streamline the runoff system and it’s already how uniformed and overseas South Carolinians can vote (Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voters Act). I am requesting that you give H.4022 a hearing.

Not only would results be determined sooner, but it would improve our elections. It would protect against vote splitting by allowing voters to support all candidates who align with their views. This would also allow parties to build their bench without fear of splitting the vote. This would also minimize strategic voting and allow voters to express their will without compromising their values.

It would also curb negative campaigning, allowing legislators/candidates to focus on their policies rather than on defense. This would help grow your base by bringing more people together over the issues.

It would also give winners a more secure mandate to govern since majority support is determined from a larger pool of voters than a traditional runoff. When more voters are satisfied with the winner, there’s more confidence in elections.

For all of the above reasons and more, please give H.4022 a hearing.

Thank you again for your time

"

We encourage you to include any personal stories that emphasize the need for instant runoff voting in municipalities.

If you would like to call, here is a sample message:

"

My name is _____ and I would like you to give H.4022 a hearing. I am a part of a coalition of 12 organizations representing thousands of South Carolinians. Giving municipalities the option to use instant runoff voting in their elections will benefit both the voters and the government. It will save time and money. It minimizes strategic voting and allows voters to express their will without compromising their values. It also protects against vote splitting by allowing voters to support all candidates who align with their views, and because of that, allows parties to build their bench. Additionally, it discourages negative campaigning, allowing candidates to focus on policy and not defense. Finally, it’s how our overseas absentee voters can vote. All South Carolinians should have this option for their municipalities.

For all of these reasons and more, please give H.4022 a hearing.

"

If you would like to also contact your own legislator (click here to find out who that is and for contact information):

Message:

"

As one of your constituents who supports instant runoff voting, I urge you to support H.4022. I am a part of a coalition of 12 organizations representing thousands of South Carolinians. Runoff elections are costly and under attended. There is a bipartisan bill that has been introduced to the House (H.4022) that would give the option to municipalities to implement a better process to run their elections. Instant runoff voting would streamline the runoff system and it’s already how uniformed and overseas South Carolinians can vote (Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voters Act).

Not only would results be determined sooner, but it would improve our elections. It would protect against vote splitting by allowing voters to support all candidates who align with their views. This would also allow parties to build their bench without fear of splitting the vote. This would also minimize strategic voting and allow voters to express their will without compromising their values.

It would also curb negative campaigning, allowing legislators/candidates to focus on their policies rather than on defense. This would help grow your base by bringing more people together over the issues.

It would also give winners a more secure mandate to govern since majority support is determined from a larger pool of voters than a traditional runoff. When more voters are satisfied with the winner, there’s more confidence in elections.

"

Phone:

"

My name is _____ and as one of your constituents, I would like you to give H.4022 a hearing. Giving municipalities the option to use instant runoff voting in their elections will benefit both the voters and the government. It will save time and money. It’s already an option for our overseas absentee voters. All South Carolinians should have this option for their municipalities.

It minimizes strategic voting and allows voters to express their will without compromising their values. It also protects against vote splitting by allowing voters to support all candidates who align with their views, and because of that, allows parties to build their bench. Additionally, it discourages negative campaigning, allowing candidates to focus on policy and not defense. For all of these reasons and more, please give H.4022 a hearing.

"

Thank you for taking action

Welcome to the IRV/RCV Day Rally at the State House

Hosted by Better Ballot SC

More Voice and More Choice

Program of Events

Introduction

Nicole Sanchez

President of Better Ballot SC

Explanation of Instant Runoff Voting/Ranked Choice Voting and Today's Polls

Rank Your Ice Cream

Rank Your Sports to Watch

Rank Your Marvel Super Heroes

Nicole Sanchez

Remarks

Danny Morales

Co-Chair of SC State Braver Angels and Co-Chair of Braver Angels Soda City Alliance

Remarks

Joseph Oddo

Four Time Ballot Certified Congressional Candidate and Founder of Numerous Political Advocacy Organizations

Rank Your Ice Cream Results

Nicole Sanchez

Remarks

Kasie Whitener

Vice Chair of the SC Libertarian Party

She will also read a statement from former GA Senate Candidate and current Presidential Candidate Chase Oliver

Remarks

David Whiteman

Member of the SC Green Party and Former Member of the University of South Carolina Political Science Department

Rank Your Favorite Sport to Watch Results

Nicole Sanchez

Remarks

Christopher Himsl

Former Colonel in the United States Army and Current Midlands Leader of Principles First South Carolina

Remarks

Dr. Jermaine Johnson

South Carolina State House Representative, District 70

Rank Your Marvel Super Heroes

Nicole Sanchez

Keynote Speaker

Andrew Yang

Former Presidential Candidate and Current Co-Leader of Forward

Coalition Partners

Special Thanks

All our program participants

Contact Your Representatives About These Great Bills

Voters Choice Act

This bill would provide $40 million in grants to support local and state governments to transition to instant runoff voting and cover up to 50% of the cost.

Click here to learn more about this great bill

Click here to contact your representatives about this great reform.

Fair Representation Act

This common sense bill expands instant runoff voting to all Americans and solves the problem of gerrymandering

It establishes multi-member districts for congressional elections

It institutes single transferable vote in these elections (this is instant runoff voting but for elections with multiple candidates)

It creates new requirements for congressional redistricting

Click here to contact your representatives about this great reform

Are you interested in becoming a part of the voting reform effort in South Carolina? Let's expand instant runoff voting (also known as ranked choice voting) in South Carolina and give voters More Voice and More Choice.

We've been working to educate voters about this common sense upgrade to the way that we currently vote. Join us to Better the South Carolina Ballot by RSVPing for our quarterly statewide strategy call.

This month we're going hybrid! If you're in the Charleston area, join us in person. If you're not, join us via Zoom. We'll be at Tradesman Brewing Company!

Curious how it works? It's as easy as 1, 2, 3! Join the call and we can go more in depth, but here are the basics:

When voters go to the polls, instead of voting for one, they rank their candidates. This gives voters More Voice and More Choice. If a voter's top choice has no path to victory, their vote is transferred to their second choice. This ensures majority support while eliminating costly runoffs. It also has some other great benefits:

• Reduces polarization and mudslinging
• Eliminates the spoiler effect and vote splitting
• Increases representation

Visit our Why IRV? page to learn more. Or come to the meeting!

Are you a fan of instant runoff voting (also known as ranked choice voting) and want your friends to know it too? This is a perfect opportunity!

We can send a presenter who knows all about IRV and can easily communicate that information to you and your guests. Plus, you'll have the opportunity to see IRV in action with an election of your choice. Some of our favorites are cookies, wings, and beer, but if you have something else in mind, we're open! Just let us know.

To host a house party, simply fill out the form below and we'll be in touch.

Some happy guests at our first house party!

Please sign below to show your support for instant runoff voting. The more signatures we have, the easier it will be for this important legislation to move forward.

Instant runoff voting or IRV (also known as ranked choice voting) is a simple, common sense upgrade to the way that we vote that solves multiple problems

Why Instant Runoff Voting?

Save Time and Money with IRV

• The state of South Carolina spent over $830,000 just in primary runoffs in 2018. What a waste!
• Runoffs occur when no candidate in the race achieves 50% of the vote. Runoffs are most prevalent in primaries, but many places in South Carolina require the candidate to secure at least 50% of the vote. When they do not, a runoff election is triggered and voters need to return to the polls in two weeks.
  • Runoffs generally have a much lower voter turnout compared to regular elections.
• With IRV, voters only need to vote once. This saves time and money. Plus, it ensures that more than 50% of the voters have voted for the winner.
• Currently, our over seas military use an instant runoff ballot.

Encourages Competition

• Everyone loves a good competition: more choices means that we can more easily find a candidate who represents our will.
• Since voters can rank their choices on a single ballot, we can vote for the best candidate with the best ideas instead of voting strategically

Promotes Majority Support

• Not all South Carolina elections result in a runoff if a candidate secures less than 50% of the vote. That means that we have elected officials for whom the majority of South Carolinians did not vote.
  • In 2018 there were 79 races where the winner did not secure majority support
• With IRV, we don't have to go back to the polls to ensure majority support because we rank our candidates all at once. Every winner will have secured majority support.

Discourages Negative Campaigning

• Since voters rank their choices, candidates also want to be voter's second and third choices.

• In non-IRV elections, candidates benefit from mudslinging and attacking their opponent instead of sharing their positive vision and policies with voters. This can lead to increasingly toxic and polarizing campaigns.

• With IRV, candidates also compete for second choice votes from their opponents’ supporters which lessens the incentive to run a negative campaign. In IRV contests, candidates do best when they reach out positively to as many voters as possible, including those supporting their opponents.

Other Benefits

• Reduces polarization
• Encourages greater representation
  • Candidates are sometimes pressured to stay out of the race for fear of splitting the vote with another similar candidate. This can be particularly true for candidates from groups under-represented in elected office, such as people of color and women. 
• Minimizes strategic voting by eliminating vote splitting and the spoiler effect
  

How Does It Work

Instant Runoff Voting is a simple upgrade to the way we currently vote.

Right now, when you vote, you pick one candidate. With Instant Runoff Voting, you get to rank candidates in the order that you prefer them: 1st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd choice, and so on. If your first choice can’t win, your vote automatically transfers to your second choice.

If a candidate secures more than 50% of the vote in the first round, then nothing is different and the candidate wins. However, if a candidate does not receive 50% of the vote, the candidate who has secured the fewest votes is eliminated and anyone who voted for that candidate has their vote transferred to their second pick. This process continues until a candidate reached 50%. This ensures that every vote counts and the candidate who won has majority support.

It's that simple. We rank all kinds of things in our lives. We all have favorites and second choices, even third choices. Better Ballot SC wants to upgrade all South Carolinians to this common sense way of voting.

Here's an example of a sample BBQ Ballot:

What Others Are Saying

Cato Institute: Reasons to Like Ranked Choice Voting

FairVote: What Unites Utah Republicans and Democrats? Ranked Choice Voting

Washington Post: How Ranked Choice Voting Saved the Virginia GOP From Itself

Videos on IRV/RCV

Fair Vote has been educating the public about the benefits of Instant Runoff Voting for years. Check out one of their videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqblOq8BmgM

The Utah Republican Party used IRV in their National Convention. See their explainer video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ie2tyRlj6Bw

Check out this video that talks about voting for the lesser of two evils: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6pC5IJirrY