Democracy works best when as many eligible people participate in the process as possible. Ranked Choice Voting in Las Cruces delivered on its promise to engage more voters. In fact, in the city’s first RCV election in 2019, turnout was up by 12 percent.
RCV was also popular with voters who turned out – even before they knew the outcome of the election. Fifty-three percent of voters surveyed liked the RCV process and supported the system’s continued use. It’s notable that this was before knowing if their candidate won or lost their bid for office. That’s important because voters’ faith in the electoral methods their communities use should not be tied to any particular outcome.
By eliminating the need to hold separate run-off elections, cities can also save money. In fact, Albuquerque currently budgets a whopping $1.5 million just for potential city council runoffs, and the City of Las Cruces has estimated a mayoral race runoff would have cost approximately $100,000.
