Missouri voters will decide Constitutional Amendment 7 on November 5. The measure bans ranked choice voting in the state. Ranked choice voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference rather than choosing just one, and they can rank as many or as few as they’d like. If they prefer to just vote for one candidate, they may do so.
Peter Brann, a visiting lecturer in law at Harvard Law School in 2020, explained in an article on Harvard Law's website, "in races in which there are more than two candidates, if no candidate gets over 50% of the first-choice ballots, the lowest-ranked candidate is dropped, and the second choices of his or her voters are counted and added to the higher-ranked candidates. This process continues until a candidate gets over 50% and is declared the winner."
Official ballot title and fair ballot language
Official Ballot Title:
Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:Make the Constitution consistent with state law by only allowing citizens of the United States to vote;Prohibit the ranking of candidates by limiting voters to a single vote per candidate or issue; andRequire the plurality winner of a political party primary to be the single candidate at a general election?State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings. Fair Ballot Language:
A “yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to specify that only United States citizens are entitled to vote, voters shall only have a single vote for each candidate or issue, restrict any type of ranking of candidates for a particular office and require the person receiving the greatest number of votes at the primary election as a party candidate for an office shall be the only candidate for that party at the general election, and require the person receiving the greatest number of votes for each office at the general election shall be declared the winner. This provision does not apply to any nonpartisan municipal election held in a city that had an ordinance in effect as of November 5, 2024, that requires a preliminary election at which more than one candidate advances to a subsequent election.
A “no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to make any changes to how voters vote in primary and general elections.
If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.
Pros and cons
Those in favor of Amendment 7 claim ranked choice voting is too difficult for voters and decreases voter confidence.
But Larry Bradley with Better Ballot KC disagrees.
“Voters find this to be easy, and it's intuitive when you look at the ballot. The normal ballot has the list of names on the left and one row of ovals to the right of the names," he said. "That's the winner-take-all ballot that everybody's used to. With the ranked choice, we add two more rows of ovals to the right. 85% of the voting machines in Missouri are capable of doing this with up to three choices, and so it’s very simple.”
Bradley believes ranked choice voting, where used, decreases voter frustration by making sure the winning candidate receives the majority of votes.
"One of the key phrases," he said, is consent of the governed. Well, how do you have the consent of the governed working when you are allowing people to assume elected office who got their nominations and/or won their elections with less than a majority of the vote?"
Critics of Amendment 7 argue that ranked choice voting should be allowed because it provides more choice for voters. Better Ballot KC states on its website that it gives candidates a reason to run smarter campaigns focused on real issues.
But those in favor of Amendment 7 argue ranked choice voting is too confusing for voters and goes against the U.S. Constitution.
“Amendment 7 protects the integrity of our election," said Byron Keelin, president of Freedom Principle MO, a pro-Amendment 7 organization. "And it will, you know, make sure that we stick to the, you know, our constitutional standard of one person, one vote, and we believe it...it's insurance for the integrity of our elections.”
Keelin believes ranked choice voting is "cumbersome" for voters and decreases voter confidence by making voting more complicated.
The measure would also ban noncitizens from voting in Missouri, something critics say is already illegal in the state. Keelin argues Amendment 7 simply protects our elections.
