Oakland, California, Measure O, Ranked-Choice Voting Amendment (November 2006)
Oakland Measure O | |
---|---|
Election date |
|
Topic Local charter amendments and Local elections and campaigns |
|
Status |
|
Type Referral |
|
Oakland Measure O was on the ballot as a referral in Oakland on November 7, 2006. It was approved.
A "yes" vote supported adopting ranked-choice voting for municipal elections in Oakland. |
A "no" vote opposed adopting ranked-choice voting for municipal elections in Oakland. |
Election results
Oakland Measure O |
||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
64,093 | 68.63% | |||
No | 29,299 | 31.37% |
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Measure O was as follows:
“ | Shall the City Charter be amended to require the use of ranked choice voting, known sometimes as instant runoff voting, to elect city offices by a majority vote at a November election without holding a prior June election? | ” |
Full Text
The full text of this measure is available here.
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
The Oakland City Council referred the charter amendment to the ballot on July 18, 2006.[1]
See also
Footnotes
![]() |
State of California Sacramento (capital) |
---|---|
Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |