,i  #aafth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #ddfd  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,september #bd1      
#bjai,mr4 ,raskin 7for himself1 ,mr4    
,beyer1 ,mr4 ,cohen1 ,mr4 ,cooper1 ,mr4 
,kennedy1 ,mr4 ,khanna1 ,mr4 ,mc,govern1
 ,mr4 ,moulton1 ,mr4 ,peters1 ,ms4      
,pingree1 ,miss ,rice of ,new ,york1 and
 ,ms4 ,pressley7 introduced the         
following bill2 which was referred to   
the ,committee on ,house ,administration
  ,a ,,bill  ,to establish the use of   
ranked choice voting in elections for   
the offices of ,senator and             
,representative in ,congress1 and for   
other purposes4  #a4 ,short title2      
finding of constitutional authority  7a7
 ,short ,title ,this ,act may be cited  
as the ,ranked ,choice ,voting ,act4    
7b7 ,finding of ,constitutional         
authority ,congress finds that it has   
the authority to establish the terms and
 conditions ,states must follow in      
administering elections for the offices 
of ,senator and ,representative in      

,congress because the authority granted 
to ,congress under article ,i1 section  
#d of the ,constitution of the ,united  
,states gives ,congress the power to    
enact laws governing the time1 place1   
and manner of elections for such        
offices4  #b4 ,requiring ranked choice  
voting for election of ,senators and    
,representatives  7a7 ,in ,general      
,title ,,iii of the ,help ,america ,vote
 ,act of #bjjb 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #bajha et 
seq47 is amended by adding at the end   
the following new subtitle3  ,c ,ranked 
,choice ,voting  #a ,requiring ,ranked  
,choice ,voting for ,election of        
,senators and ,representatives  #cba4   
,requiring ranked choice voting for     
election of ,senators and               
,representatives  7a7 ,ranked ,choice   
,voting ,each ,state shall carry out    
elections for the office of ,senator and
 the office of ,representative in       
,congress1 including primary1 special1  
and general elections for such office1  
using a system of ranked choice voting  

7also known as instant runoff voting7   
under which each voter shall rank the   
candidates for the office in the order  
of the voter's preference1 in accordance
 with this title4  7b7 ,ballot ,design  
,each ,state shall ensure that the      
ballot used in an election carried out  
using a system of ranked choice voting  
under this title meets each of the      
following requirements3  7#a7 ,the      
ballot shall be simple and easy to      
understand4  7#b7 ,the ballot shall     
include all qualified candidates for the
 election and 7to the extent permitted  
under ,state law7 options for voters to 
select write-in candidates4 ,if         
feasible1 the ballot shall permit voters
 to rank every candidate in the         
election4 ,if it is not feasible for the
 ballot to permit voters to rank every  
candidate1 the ,state may limit the     
number of candidates who may be ranked  
on the ballot to not fewer than #f4     
7#c7 ,the ballot shall include such     
instructions as the ,state considers    

necessary to enable the voter to rank   
candidates and successfully cast the    
ballot under the system4  #cbb4         
,prohibiting additional runoff elections
  7a7 ,primary elections ,no ,state may 
hold a runoff primary election for the  
office of ,senator or the office of     
,representative in ,congress after the  
date established under ,state law for   
the primary election for such office4   
7b7 ,general elections ,no ,state may   
hold a runoff general election for the  
office of ,senator or the office of     
,representative in ,congress after the  
date established under section #be of   
the ,revised ,statutes of the ,united   
,states 7#b ,u4,s4,c4 #g7 for the       
regularly scheduled general election for
 such office4  7c7 ,special elections   
,no ,state may hold a runoff special    
election for the office of ,senator or  
the office of ,representative in        
,congress after the date established by 
the ,state under ,state law for such    
special election for such office4  #cbc4

 ,treatment of primary elections  7a7   
,conditions for holding nonpartisan     
blanket primary elections ,a ,state may 
hold a nonpartisan blanket primary      
election for the office of ,senator or  
the office of ,representative in        
,congress only if ,state law provides   
that at least #c candidates advance to  
the subsequent general election1 or1 if 
write-in candidates are allowed in the  
general election1 at least #b candidates
 advance4  7b7 ,rule of construction    
,nothing in this title shall be         
construed to require a ,state to hold a 
primary election for the office of      
,senator or the office of               
,representative in ,congress prior to   
the date established under section #be  
of the ,revised ,statutes of the ,united
 ,states 7#b ,u4,s4,c4 #g7 for the      
regularly scheduled general election for
 such office1 so long as the            
determination of the candidates who are 
elected to such office is based solely  
on the votes cast with respect to the   

election held on such date1 as          
determined in accordance with the system
 of ranked choice voting under this     
title4  #cbd4 ,application to ,district 
of ,columbia and ,territories  7a7      
,election of ,delegates and ,resident   
,commissioner ,in this subtitle1 the    
term ,representative includes a         
,delegate or ,resident ,commissioner to 
the ,congress4  7b7 ,application to     
,northern ,mariana ,islands ,this       
subtitle shall apply with respect to the
 ,commonwealth of the ,northern ,mariana
 ,islands in the same manner as this    
subtitle applies to a ,state4  #b       
,tabulation ,process  #cca4 ,tabulation 
process  7a7 ,in ,general  7#a7         
,determination of candidate's number of 
votes ,the number of votes received by a
 candidate in either the initial        
tabulation or in an additional round of 
tabulation shall be equal to the number 
of ballots on which that candidate is   
the highest ranked continuing candidate4
  7#b7 ,criteria for election ,except as

 provided in section #ccb1 a candidate  
shall be elected to the office of       
,senator or the office of               
,representative in ,congress 7or1 in the
 case of a primary election1 shall      
advance to the general election for such
 office as provided under the law of the
 ,state involved7 if--  7,a7 the        
candidate receives a number of votes    
greater than #ej percent of the number  
of ballots cast in the election2 or     
7,b7 if the election official carries   
out additional rounds of tabulation     
under subsection 7b71 the candidate     
receives the greatest number of votes of
 the remaining continuing candidates 7as
 described in such subsection74  7b7    
,process in ,case no ,candidate ,elected
 ,under ,initial ,tabulation  7#a7      
,additional rounds of tabulation ,if1   
under the initial tabulation of ballots1
 no candidate is elected to office 7or1 
in the case of a primary election1 no   
candidate advances to the general       
election for such office7 under the     

criteria described in subsection        
7a77#b77;,a71 the election official     
shall carry out additional rounds of    
tabulation in accordance with paragraph 
7#b7 until only #b continuing candidates
 remain4  7#b7 ,treatment of ballots in 
additional rounds ,in each additional   
round of tabulation carried out under   
this subsection-- 7,a7 the candidate    
receiving the fewest number of votes    
among all candidates 7or1 in the case of
 a ,state which applies batch           
elimination under section #ccd1 each    
candidate in the batch elimination      
group7 shall be treated as a defeated   
candidate2  7,b7 for each ballot cast   
for a defeated candidate1 the election  
official shall determine the            
highest-ranked candidate on the ballot  
who is a continuing candidate2 and  7,c7
 the vote cast on the ballot shall be   
transferred to1 and added to the total  
number of votes received by1 the        
highest-ranked continuing candidate     
determined under subparagraph 7,b74     

#ccb4 ,special rules for nonpartisan    
blanket primary elections  7a7          
,determination of winning candidates ,in
 the case of a nonpartisan blanket      
primary election1 a candidate for the   
office of ,senator or the office of     
,representative in ,congress shall be   
treated as a winning candidate and shall
 advance to the general election for    
such office if1 during any round of     
tabulation carried out under this       
section1 the candidate is a continuing  
candidate and the total number of       
winning and continuing candidates is    
equal to or less than the required      
number of winning candidates with       
respect to the election1 as provided    
under the law of the ,state involved4   
7b7 ,tabulation process  7#a7           
,additional rounds of tabulation ,after 
the initial tabulation of ballots in a  
nonpartisan blanket primary election1   
the election official shall carry out   
additional rounds of tabulation in      
accordance with paragraph 7#b7 until the

 number of winning candidates is equal  
to the required number of winning       
candidates with respect to the election1
 as provided under the law of the ,state
 involved4  7#b7 ,treatment of ballots  
in additional rounds ,in each additional
 round of tabulation carried out under  
this subsection-- 7,a7 the candidate    
receiving the fewest number of votes    
among all candidates 7or1 in the case of
 a ,state which applies batch           
elimination under section #ccd1 each    
candidate in the batch elimination      
group7 shall be treated as a defeated   
candidate2  7,b7 for each ballot cast   
for a defeated candidate1 the election  
official shall determine the            
highest-ranked candidate on the ballot  
who is a continuing candidate2 and  7,c7
 the vote cast on the ballot shall be   
transferred to1 and added to the total  
number of votes received by1 the        
highest-ranked continuing candidate     
determined under subparagraph 7,b74     
#ccc4 ,exclusion of inactive ballots    

,in any round of tabulation of ballots  
under this part1 including the initial  
tabulation of ballots1 a vote shall not 
be counted for any candidate if it is   
cast on an inactive ballot4  #ccd4 ,use 
of batch elimination  7a7 ,batch        
elimination described ,at the option of 
the ,state1 with respect to any         
candidate elimination round carried out 
under this subsection1 a ,state may use 
batch elimination to treat multiple     
candidates as defeated candidates for   
purposes of the additional rounds of    
tabulation described in section         
#cca7;b77#b7 or section #ccb7;b77#b74 ,a
 continuing candidate is in the         
elimination batch if it is              
mathematically impossible for that      
candidate to be a winning candidate in  
the election for any of the following   
reasons3  7#a7 ,the candidate's vote    
total in the initial tabulation of      
ballots plus all of the votes that could
 possibly be transferred to the         
candidate in the additional rounds of   

tabulation would not be enough to equal 
or surpass the continuing candidate with
 the next highest vote total in the     
initial tabulation of ballots4  7#b7    
,the candidate has a lower current vote 
total than a continuing candidate       
described in paragraph 7#a74  7b7       
,special rule for nonpartisan blanket   
primary elections ,in the case of a     
nonpartisan blanket primary election for
 which tabulation is carried out in     
accordance with section #ccb1 a         
candidate may not be in the elimination 
batch if the candidate's vote total is  
one of the top  vote totals among all   
continuing candidates1 with the blank   
space filled in with the required number
 of winning candidates with respect to  
the election1 as provided under the law 
of the ,state involved4  #cce4          
,treatment of ties between candidates   
,if a tie occurs between candidates with
 the greatest number of votes or the    
fewest number of votes at any point in  
the tabulation of ballots under this    

part and the tabulation cannot proceed  
until the tie is resolved1 the tie shall
 be resolved in accordance with ,state  
law4  #ccf4 ,determination of votes cast
 for candidates of political parties for
 purposes of access to ballot in        
,federal elections ,to the extent that a
 ,state takes into account the number of
 votes cast in an election for          
candidates of a political party in      
determining the right of candidates of  
the party to appear on the ballot in    
subsequent elections for ,federal office
 in the ,state1 the ,state shall        
determine the number of votes cast for a
 candidate solely on the basis of the   
initial tabulation of ballots in the    
election1 and shall not take into       
account any additional round of         
tabulation under section #cca7;b7 or    
section #ccb7;b74  #c ,payments to      
,states ,to ,implement ,ranked ,choice  
,voting  #cda4 ,payments to ,states to  
implement ranked choice voting  7a7     
,payments ,not later than ,june #a1     

#bjba1 the ,commission shall make a     
payment to the ,state in an amount equal
 to--  7#a7 in the case of the ,district
 of ,columbia1 the ,commonwealth of     
,puerto ,rico1 ,american ,samoa1 ,guam1 
the ,united ,states ,virgin ,islands1   
and the ,commonwealth of the ,northern  
,mariana ,islands1 #a1jjj1jjj2 or  7#b7 
in the case of any other ,state1 the sum
 of #gej1jjj and the product of-- 7,a7  
the number of ,representatives to which 
the ,state is entitled under the        
reapportionment of ,representatives     
resulting from the regular decennial    
census conducted during #bjbj2 and  7,b7
 #bej1jjj4  7b7 ,use of ,funds ,a ,state
 shall use the payment made under       
subsection 7a7 to implement ranked      
choice voting under this subtitle1      
including educating voters about ranked 
choice voting1 and to otherwise carry   
out elections for ,federal office in the
 ,state4  7c7 ,authorization of         
,appropriations ,there are authorized to
 be appropriated such sums as may be    

necessary for payments under this       
section4  #d ,definitions  #cea4        
,definitions ,in this subtitle1 the     
following definitions apply3 7#a7 ,the  
term continuing candidate means1 with   
respect to an additional round of       
tabulation conducted under section      
#cca7;b7 or section #ccb7;b71 a         
candidate who is neither a winning      
candidate nor a candidate who is treated
 as a defeated candidate under such     
section during the tabulation of ballots
 under such section4  7#b7 ,the term    
inactive ballot means1 with respect to a
 round of tabulation under section #cca 
or section #ccb-- 7,a7 a ballot on which
 the voter does not rank any of the     
continuing candidates in order of       
preference2  7,b7 a ballot on which the 
voter ranked more than one continuing   
candidate at the highest order of       
preference2 or  7,c7 a ballot on which  
the voter skips two or more consecutive 
numerical rankings prior to the ranking 
for the continuing candidate at the     

highest order of preference4  7#c7 ,the 
term nonpartisan blanket primary        
election means a single1 open primary   
election for the office of ,senator or  
the office of ,representative in        
,congress in which all candidates for   
the office are listed on the same       
primary election ballot1 regardless of  
political party affiliation4  7#d7 ,the 
term winning candidate means a candidate
 who was elected to office 7or1 in the  
case of a primary election1 who advanced
 to the general election for such office
 as provided under the law of the ,state
 involved7 under the tabulation process 
applicable to the election under part #b
 at any time during the tabulation of   
ballots4  4  7b7 ,conforming amendment  
relating to applicability of enforcement
 provisions ,section #dja of such ,act  
7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #baaaa7 is amended by    
striking sections #cja1 #cjb1 and #cjc  
and inserting title ,,iii4  7c7         
,clerical ,amendment ,the table of      
contents of such ,act is amended by     

adding at the end of the item relating  
to title ,,iii the following3  ,subtitle
 ,c--,ranked ,choice ,voting ,part      
#a--,requiring ,ranked ,choice ,voting  
for ,election of ,senators and          
,representatives ,sec4 #cba4 ,requiring 
ranked choice voting for election of    
,senators and ,representatives4 ,sec4   
#cbb4 ,prohibiting additional runoff    
elections4 ,sec4 #cbc4 ,treatment of    
primary elections4 ,sec4 #cbd4          
,application to ,district of ,columbia  
and ,territories4 ,part #b--,tabulation 
,process ,sec4 #cca4 ,tabulation        
process4 ,sec4 #ccb4 ,special rules for 
nonpartisan blanket primary elections4  
,sec4 #ccc4 ,exclusion of inactive      
ballots4 ,sec4 #ccd4 ,use of batch      
elimination4 ,sec4 #cce4 ,treatment of  
ties between candidates4 ,sec4 #ccf4    
,determination of votes cast for        
candidates of political parties for     
purposes of access to ballot in ,federal
 elections4 ,part #c--,payments to      
,states ,to ,implement ,ranked ,choice  

,voting ,sec4 #cda4 ,payments to ,states
 to implement ranked choice voting4     
,part #d--;,definitions ,sec4 #cea4     
,definitions4  4  #c4 ,no effect on     
elections for ,state and local office   
,nothing in this ,act or in any         
amendment made by this ,act may be      
construed to affect the manner in which 
a ,state carries out elections for      
,state or local office4  #d4            
,severability ,if any provision of this 
,act or any amendment made by this ,act1
 or the application of a provision of   
this ,act or an amendment made by this  
,act to any person or circumstance1 is  
held to be unconstitutional1 the        
remainder of this ,act1 and the         
application of the provisions to any    
person or circumstance1 shall not be    
affected by the holding4  #e4 ,effective
 date ,this ,act and the amendments made
 by this ,act shall apply with respect  
to elections for ,federal office held on
 or after ,january #a1 #bjbb4