He's back! No, ranked-choice voting won't stop LePage
With the news that the Maine Republican Party is clearing the field to help former Governor (and current Trumpist caricature) Paul LePage mount a comeback attempt against Governor Janet Mills in 2022, social media once again saw a smattering of posts with a familiar but false idea: Ranked-choice voting will make it more difficult for LePage to win this time around.
“With RCV, LePage will have a very tough time,” tweeted one commenter. “Ranked Choice voting plus Mills’ high approval will make her a tough opponent to beat,” wrote another.
These posts make some sense – both of LePage’s electoral successes came with independent Eliot Cutler also in the race. In 2010, at least, he probably wouldn’t have won if ranked-choice voting had been in effect. His plurality victories by small margins in these races were a big part of the reason behind the implementation of ranked-choice voting in Maine through a citizen-initiated referendum in 2016.
Unfortunately, RCV doesn’t apply in general elections for governor.
In May, 2017, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled in a unanimous opinion that a requirement in the state’s constitution that winners in gubernatorial and legislative general elections receive a “plurality” of the vote prohibits the use of ranked-choice voting in those races.
Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/no-ranked-choice-voting-wont-stop-lepage/