Boulder, Colorado, Measure 2E, Ranked-Choice Voting for Mayor Amendment (November 2020)
| Boulder Measure 2E | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic Local electoral systems and Local charter amendments | |
Status Approved | |
| Type Referral | Origin Lawmakers |
Boulder Measure 2E was on the ballot as a referral in Boulder on November 3, 2020. It was approved.
A "yes" vote supported amending the city charter to elect the mayor through ranked-choice voting, a system in which voters rank candidates and tabulation occurs in rounds that eliminate the candidate with the fewest votes until one candidate receives a majority of votes, and set term limits for mayoral candidates. |
A "no" vote opposed this measure for the mayor to be elected through ranked choice voting, thereby leaving the existing system in which the mayor is selected by the city council from among city council members. |
A simple majority was required for the approval of Measure 2E.
Election results
|
Boulder Measure 2E |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
42,784 | 78.14% | ||
| No | 11,972 | 21.86% | ||
Overview
How did Measure 2E change the way the mayor is selected?
Measure 2E amended the city charter to make the mayor elected directly by voters to two-year terms. The measure provides that elections for mayor to be conducted through ranked choice voting. The first election for mayor using ranked choice voting was set to take place in 2023. Measure 2E provided that the directly-elected mayor continue to be the fifth member of the city council. Under the measure, voters will vote for four city council members and the mayor instead of voting for five city council members.
Going into the election, the mayor was selected by the city council from among the city council members.
Measure 2E also set term limits that preventing a candidate from being qualified to run for mayor if they have served eight years as mayor or three terms as a council member and four years as mayor.
What is ranked choice voting?
- See also: Ranked choice voting
A ranked-choice voting system (RCV) is an electoral system in which voters rank candidates by preference on their ballots. If a candidate wins a majority of first-preference votes, he or she is declared the winner. If no candidate wins a majority of first-preference votes, the candidate with the fewest first-preference votes is eliminated. First-preference votes cast for the failed candidate are eliminated, lifting the second-preference choices indicated on those ballots. A new tally is conducted to determine whether any candidate has won a majority of the adjusted votes. The process is repeated until a candidate wins an outright majority.
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Measure 2E was as follows:
| “ | Shall Article II, Sections 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 14, and 15 of the Boulder City Charter be amended to provide for the direct election of the mayor by ranked choice (instant runoff) voting? | ” |
Full Text
The full text of this measure is available here.
Support
Our Mayor-Our Choice agreed to this alternative to its citizen initiative and backed Measure 2E.[1]
Arguments
Matt Benjamin, campaign chair for Our Mayor-Our Choice, said:[2]
| “ |
Why is Boulder the largest city in Colorado that does not elect its mayor? Appointing the mayor is typically something only small towns do. The next largest city that does this has close to 60,000 people, about half of our population. It’s long past time Boulder operate like the biggest little city that we are. Coupling this vote with ranked choice voting allows us to produce elections without the pitfalls of our current election system, which is meant to keep those in power with the power. There is a reason that RCV is being rapidly adopted all over the county. It provides voters with more voice and more choice. By ranking your preference of candidates, the winner has the true majority of support. We will no longer have to worry about like-minded candidates splitting the vote and thus having the winner represent a minority of voters. Knowing that there’s a higher probability of being represented properly, we see that marginalized groups participate, and their voices are heard. Cities using RCV tend to see up to a 10 percent increase in voter turnout. For Boulder, that would mean roughly 3,500 more people joining our political discourse. Our society is better when more people are voting and a greater diversity of ideas are discussed.[3] |
” |
Opposition
If you know of opponents or opposing arguments that should be posted here, email editor@ballotpedia.org.
Background
Ranked-choice voting (RCV)
| Ranked-choice voting (RCV) ballot measures | |
|---|---|
| Pages: • Ranked-choice voting (RCV) • History of RCV ballot measures • Electoral systems on the ballot • Local electoral systems on the ballot • Electoral systems by state | |
- See also: Ranked-choice voting (RCV)
The ballot measure has played a role in shaping electoral systems in the U.S., including ranked-choice voting (RCV) for state and local elections.
Since 1915, there have been more than 150 ballot measures to adopt or repeal ranked-choice voting systems. Ashtabula, Ohio, was the first jurisdiction to approve a ranked-choice voting measure in 1915.
RCV is an electoral system in which voters rank candidates on their ballots. RCV can be used for single-winner elections or multi-winner elections; when used for multi-winner elections, the system has also been called single-transferable vote or proportional representation. These terms were often used to describe multi-winner RCV before the 1970s. You can learn more about ranked-choice voting systems and policies here.
Local RCV ballot measures
Between 1965 and 2024, 79 ranked-choice voting (RCV) local ballot measures were on the ballot in 58 jurisdictions in 19 states.
- Ballotpedia has located 71 local ballot measures to adopt RCV. Voters approved 52 (78.9%) and rejected 15 (21.1%).
- There were eight local ballot measures to repeal RCV. Voters approved four (50.0%) and rejected four (50.0%).
- The year with the most local RCV ballot measures was 2022, when nine were on the ballot in nine jurisdictions. Voters approved seven of them.
- The state with the most local ballot measures related to RCV is California, where there have been 13.
The following table shows the number of ranked-choice voting measures by topic.
| Local ranked-choice vote measures by topic and outcome, 1965 - April 2025 | |||||
| Topic | Total | Approved | Approved (%) | Defeated | Defeated (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adopt RCV | 72 | 57 | 79.2% | 15 | 20.08% |
| Repeal RCV | 8 | 4 | 50.0% | 4 | 50.0% |
| Total | 80 | 61 | 76.3% | 19 | 23.7% |
Path to the ballot
This measure was put on the ballot through a 7-2 vote of the Boulder City Council on August 11, 2020.[4]
A citizen initiative petition effort collected 5,800 signatures for a ranked choice initiative. A total of 8,096 valid signatures were required. An alternative version was approved by the city council for the ballot.[4]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Our Mayor-Our Choice, "Home," accessed October 26, 2020
- ↑ Daily Camera, "Guest opinion: Matt Benjamin: Boulderites should elect their own mayor," October 8, 2020
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Daily Camera, "Mayor ballot initiative moves forward," August 11, 2020
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