Alaska’s Nov. 3 election provides voters an option to rank candidates according to their preferences. It’s an opportunity many voters don’t take.
Alaska Public Media’s Liz Ruskin revealed the statistics on “bullet voting” in the Sept. 4 edition of her politics newsletter, Alaska at-Large.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Wesley Early: Liz, what did you find about how voters use their ballots?
Liz Ruskin: I was kind of stunned when I saw how many Alaskans “bullet vote” – that’s the term for choosing just one candidate per race and not doing any ranking.
In November 2022, Alaska’s first regular ranked choice general, 40% of voters were “bullet voters.” In November 2024, that figure was 60%. So 60% of voters did not rank their ballots. (That’s the average for all races with more than two candidates.)
I should point out that I used code drafted by AI to analyse the Division of Elections data files. I checked my results with researchers who’ve studied the same data and they say I’m not wrong.
WE: There’s nothing wrong with bullet voting, right? If a voter just chooses a favorite, isn’t that ballot still counted?
LR: Yes, it’s still counted, but bullet voters may not be using the full power of the ballot. Ranked choice is often likened to an instant runoff. The ballot essentially asks “If your favorite loses, who do you like among the remaining candidates?” So, if you’ve only chosen one and that candidate comes in last, that’s as far as your ballot goes. It’s counted for your favorite and then deemed “exhausted.” Nothing left on it to count. But if you did mark a second, your ballot lives on and will be counted for that candidate.
WE: Let’s go back to your findings – 40% of voters in 2022 were bullet voters. And in 2024 there were even more. Does that say that ranked choice isn’t working, or that Alaskans aren’t catching on?
LR: It might seem that way. But advocates of ranked choice point out that voters will rank when it matters — For example, when two like-minded candidates are in a race against a third of a different stripe. In those cases, bullet-voting rates are typically lower. Or when voters choose a less popular candidate. For instance, 80% of voters who chose longshot Democrat Pat Chesbro in the 2022 U.S. Senate race also ranked a second candidate. And the vast majority chose Lisa Murkowski, a moderate Republican, rather than the Trump-endorsed Republican.
Also, there are times when ranking really isn’t that important.
WE: How do you mean?
LR: If you know your candidate is going to make it to the final round, there’s not a lot of point in ranking. An extreme example would be the last presidential race. If you voted for President Trump or Kamala Harris, it really didn’t matter who else you ranked. Your vote was going to count in that final match-up. No one would count your rankings.
I also want to point out that bullet voting may have been especially high in 2024 because it was a presidential year.
WE: Right. I would have expected that bullet-voting would go down in 2024, as more voters became used to the idea.
LR: Yes, but a presidential election draws a lot of voters that mostly care about that race. The finer points of the ballot may not have been all that important. Midterm elections have lower turnout so you can expect the electorate to be more politically engaged.
WE: Tell us about when it’s in a voter’s interest to rank and when it’s not.
LR: I don’t think it’s ever not in a voter’s interest to rank. Even if they don’t like the system. This is a point conservatives are pressing this year, with three Republicans on the ballot for governor. I see that even conservatives who abhor ranked choice voting are urging voters to rank the Republicans, to avoid splitting the vote. Which is the purpose of ranked choice.
On the other side, one voter told me she likes the Democrat in that race but doesn’t want to rank any of the Republicans. What I told her is that ranking in NO WAY diminishes the chances of her first choice. Rankings aren’t counted unless her first choice is eliminated, so it will not count against her favorite as long as her favorite is still in the race.
Secondly, if she has ANY reason to prefer one of the Republicans over the other, she should rank. All it costs her is a few seconds to fill out the oval. And a dab of ink if she’s using her own pen.
WE: What if she really has no preference after her favorite?
LR: Sure, she doesn’t have to rank. It’s as though she turned out to vote but then there was a runoff and she sat that one out. No one has to rank.
WE: Lastly, Liz, ranked choice voting itself will be on the ballot, as a ballot measure to repeal it.
LR: Correct. Ballot Measure 2 would repeal ranked choice voting, as well as the open, nonpartisan primary and a dark money disclosure requirement.
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