The three types of marking errors that a voter could make when filling out a Ranked-Choice Voting ballot.

RCV ballots are more complex than single-choice ballots because they capture more voter preferences, which can increase the likelihood of marking mistakes or errors. However, most of these errors do not result in ballot rejection. A ballot is only rejected if the voter's intent cannot be determined.

The three types of marking errors on an RCV ballot are repeated ranking, skipped ranking, and overvote. Despite these potential errors, most ballots remain valid, and rejection rates in RCV elections are low—comparable to those in First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) elections.

When comparing error rates between RCV and FPTP elections, only first-round overvotes should be considered, as these are the only errors that caninvalidate a ballot in both systems. In other words, if a ballot is mismarked and not counted in a later round of RCV, it holds the same value in determining theoutcome as it would in an FPTP election.

Overall, RCV elections show only a slightly higher error rate. In all U.S. RCV elections with three or more candidates, the first-round overvote rate averages 0.15%. Additionally, demographic differences in error rates in RCV elections are similar to those found in non-RCV races.

 

 

Repeated ranking occurs when a voter marks the same candidate across multiple ranking positions. That is, a single row has multiple bubbles filled in.

In this scenario, there is no issue in how to interpret the ballot. The highest ranking is counted. The ballot is treated as though candidate E is first, D is second, C as third, and B as fourth.

  

 

A skipped ranking occurs when a voter does not rank all the available candidates, and ranks more candidates at subsequent rankings below another candidate with no preferences in between.

In this scenario, there is no issue in how to interpret the ballot and it is processed as the voter filled it out. The ballot is treated as though the voter ranked B first, D second, and A third.

  

 

 

An overvote occurs when a voter marks multiple candidates at the same ranking position. That is, a single column has multiple bubbles filled in.

In this scenario, the ballot would count as intended for the voter’s first and second choices, Only at the over-voted column does the ballot become impossible to interpret. When the voter’s first and second choice are eliminated the remainder of the ballot preferences would be rejected.

 

Reducing RCV Marking Errors

  • Voter education materials are effective for both informed and uninformed voters in RCV elections and can impact ballot use.
  • Properly configured voting machines can help reduce ballot rejection due to marking error. Since the Help America Vote Act became law, most voting systems prevent voters from casting ballots with errors (including the machines used in all voting systems in NJ).

The Positive Impact of Ranked-Choice Voting

  • In an analysis of RCV elections with +3 candidates, RCV caused an average of 17% more voters to directly affect the outcome of the election; that is fewer voters had their vote wasted.
  • RCV has positive impacts on voter turnout, particularly in primary and off-year elections, and also eliminates the need for run-offs that tend to have lower turnout than the initial election. The lower turn out often disproportionately impacts low-income voters.