Strengthening Democracy Through Local Choice in Ranked Choice Voting

Democracy works best when elected leaders reflect the broadest possible support of the people they serve.

Our election system should encourage citizens to vote for the candidate they genuinely believe will best serve their community—not simply the candidate they think has the best chance of winning. Whenever reasonably possible, elections should produce leaders who have earned the support of a true majority of voters.

Healthy democracy is not measured only by who wins an election. It is measured by whether people believe their voices matter, whether elections encourage thoughtful participation, and whether our systems reward collaboration over division.

Under Minnesota's current election system, a candidate can win with less than a majority of the vote when three or more candidates divide the electorate.

That outcome is entirely legal, but it does not always reflect the broadest consensus of the community. A candidate may be elected even though most voters preferred someone else.

Our current system can also encourage strategic voting. Instead of voting for the candidate they genuinely support, some voters feel pressured to choose the person they believe is "most electable" or to vote against a candidate they oppose rather than for the candidate they truly prefer.¹

I believe our election system should encourage honest participation rather than strategic calculation.

Ranked choice voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference rather than selecting only one.

If no candidate receives a majority of first-choice votes, the candidate receiving the fewest votes is eliminated and those ballots are transferred to each voter's next-highest ranked remaining candidate. The process continues until one candidate receives a majority of the ballots that remain active in the final round.²

This approach allows voters to support the candidate they genuinely believe in without worrying that their vote will be "wasted."

It also encourages candidates to build broader coalitions, engage with more residents, and earn support beyond their core base of supporters. Candidates have an incentive to seek not only first-choice votes, but also the trust and respect necessary to become voters' second or third choice.³

That kind of campaigning encourages civility, collaboration, and constructive dialogue rather than simply appealing to the loudest or most polarized voices.⁴

I believe strengthening democracy means creating systems that encourage participation, reward respectful leadership, and produce outcomes that more accurately reflect the will of the people.

Ranked choice voting is one way to move toward those goals.

It encourages voters to participate honestly. It rewards candidates who reach across differences and build consensus. And it increases the likelihood that the eventual winner enjoys broad community support.³,⁴

While no election system is perfect, I believe our democracy is strongest when elected officials can govern knowing they have earned the confidence of a majority of participating voters whenever reasonably possible.

Although I personally support ranked choice voting, I do not believe it should be imposed on communities by the State.

Different communities may reasonably reach different conclusions about whether ranked choice voting is the right fit for their local elections.

That decision should belong to the people who live there.

Local democracy is strengthened when communities are trusted to make important decisions about how they govern themselves.

Champlin is a statutory city. Under current Minnesota law, statutory cities do not have the authority to independently adopt ranked choice voting for municipal elections.⁵

Any change to that authority must come from the Minnesota Legislature.

As Mayor, I will work with Champlin's state legislative delegation to advocate for legislation that gives statutory cities the local authority to adopt ranked choice voting if their residents choose to do so.⁶

My advocacy is not simply about ranked choice voting itself. It is about strengthening democracy by trusting local communities to make thoughtful decisions about their own elections.

If that authority is granted, I believe the people of Champlin—not elected officials in St. Paul and not the Mayor alone—should decide whether ranked choice voting is the right choice for our community.

Leadership begins by trusting people.

Strong democracy begins by giving people both a meaningful voice and meaningful choices.

1. 1.Andrew C. Eggers and Tobias Nowacki, "Susceptibility to Strategic Voting: A Comparison of Plurality and Instant-Runoff Elections," The Journal of Politics 86, no. 2 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1086/726943
2. 2.Minnesota Secretary of State, "Municipal Ballot Sample (with Ranked Choice Voting)." https://www.sos.mn.gov/elections-voting/get-involved/municipal-ballot-sample-with-ranked-choice-voting/
3. 3.Marcus Ogren, "Candidate Incentive Distributions: How Voting Methods Shape Electoral Incentives," Electoral Studies 90 (2024): 102799. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2024.102799
4. 4.Todd Donovan, Caroline Tolbert, and Kellen Gracey, "Campaign Civility under Preferential and Plurality Voting," Electoral Studies 42 (2016): 157–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2016.02.009
5. 5.Minnesota House of Representatives, Session Daily, "Not Enough Support in House for Measure Allowing All MN Local Governments to Use Ranked Choice Voting" (May 19, 2024). https://www.house.mn.gov/sessiondaily/Story/18407
6. 6.Minnesota House of Representatives, "Information for HF 683," 2025–2026 Regular Session. https://www.house.mn.gov/bills/Info/HF683