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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1536
January Session, 2025
LCO No. 6694
Referred to Committee on GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION
AND ELECTIONS
Introduced by:
(GAE)
AN ACT CONCERNING THE USE OF RANKED -CHOICE VOTING IN
PARTY CAUCUSES, CONVENTIONS AND PRIMARIES, INCLUDING
PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE PRIMARIES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective January 1, 2026) (a) As used in this section: 1
(1) "Active candidate" means, with respect to a round of tabulation 2
under ranked-choice voting, a candidate (A) whose name appears on 3
the ballot or who is registered as a write-in candidate, and (B) who has 4
not been eliminated, is not a winning candidate and is not a withdrawn 5
candidate; 6
(2) "Inactive ballot" means, with respect to a given round of tabulation 7
and all subsequent rounds of tabulation under ranked-choice voting, a 8
ballot on which no vote is tabulated because (A) no candidate ranked on 9
the ballot remains an active candidate; or (B) two or more candidates are 10
ranked at the same order of preference and no other candidates that are 11
ranked higher remain as active candidates; 12
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(3) "Ranked-choice voting" means a system of casting and tabulating 13
votes under which, with respect to a particular office, (A) each elector is 14
able to rank candidates on the ballot in the order of such elector's 15
preference, (B) one or more rounds of tabulation are used to determine 16
active candidates in accordance with electors' preferences, and (C) the 17
active candidate with the greatest number of votes after all rounds of 18
tabulation are complete is the winning candidate; 19
(4) "Rank" or "ranking" means an elector's vote expressed in 20
numerical order of such elector's preferences as to the candidates on the 21
ballot, where "1" indicates the highest preference and subsequent 22
numbers indicate lower preferences; 23
(5) "Repeated ranking" means markings on a ballot whereby the same 24
candidate is ranked at multiple, differing orders of preference; 25
(6) "Skipped ranking" means markings on a ballot whereby an elector 26
leaves a ranking unassigned but also ranks a candidate at a lower order 27
of preference; 28
(7) "Undervote" means, with respect to all rounds of tabulation under 29
ranked-choice voting for a particular office, a ballot on which no vote is 30
cast due to no candidate being ranked; 31
(8) "Winning candidate" means the candidate with the greatest 32
number of votes, under ranked-choice voting, after all rounds of 33
tabulation are complete; and 34
(9) "Withdrawn candidate" means a person (A) whose candidacy has 35
been withdrawn in accordance with the applicable provision of title 9 of 36
the general statutes, and (B) in a presidential preference primary, who 37
complies with all applicable party rules governing the timing, 38
procedures or substance of candidate withdrawals or campaign 39
suspensions. 40
(b) (1) Except as prohibited by any provision of title 9 of the general 41
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statutes, the outcome of (A) any primary, other than a presidential 42
preference primary, held on or after January 1, 2026, or (B) any 43
presidential preference primary held on or after January 1, 2028, may be 44
determined under ranked-choice voting. 45
(2) (A) For any primary determined under ranked-choice voting for 46
an office to which electors nominate no more than one candidate, the 47
provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (d) of this section shall apply. 48
(B) For any primary determined under ranked-choice voting for 49
offices other than those described in subparagraph (A) of this 50
subdivision, the provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (d) of this 51
section shall not apply. 52
(c) (1) (A) At each primary conducted under ranked-choice voting, 53
the Secretary of the State shall prescribe the type of ballot to be used, the 54
instructions to appear on such ballot and the layout and orientation of 55
such ballot. The use of any ballot at any such primary shall be subject to 56
the approval of the Secretary. 57
(B) The ballot at each primary conducted under ranked-choice voting, 58
or the portion of such ballot used for ranked-choice voting, shall: 59
(i) List all candidates duly qualified to appear on such ballot for such 60
primary and in such a manner as to allow each elector who is eligible to 61
vote in such primary to rank all such candidates in the order of such 62
elector's preference, except that if such ballot cannot allow for ranking 63
of all such candidates, the Secretary may limit ranking to not less than 64
five such candidates, provided such limitation by the Secretary shall be 65
uniform with respect to all electors eligible to vote in such primary; and 66
(ii) List and identify candidates in the order and manner provided in 67
subsections (a) to (c), inclusive, and (g) of section 9-437 of the general 68
statutes, at a minimum. 69
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 9-242 of the general 70
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statutes, at each primary conducted under ranked-choice voting, the 71
voting tabulator shall be so constructed as to comply with the provisions 72
of this section. 73
(d) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, at each 74
primary for an office to which electors nominate no more than one 75
candidate, and conducted under ranked-choice voting, each ballot shall 76
be tabulated as one vote cast for the highest-ranked active candidate on 77
such ballot, and tabulation shall proceed in sequential rounds such that: 78
(A) In a round with three or more active candidates, the candidate 79
with the least number of votes at the completion of tabulation shall be 80
eliminated, the vote for such eliminated candidate shall be transferred 81
to a remaining active candidate in accordance with the ranked 82
preference expressed on such ballot and all remaining active candidates 83
shall advance to the next round; and 84
(B) In a round with fewer than three active candidates, the candidate 85
with the greatest number of votes at the completion of tabulation shall 86
be declared the winning candidate and no further rounds shall be 87
required. 88
(2) (A) If at the completion of tabulation a tie occurs between 89
candidates with the least number of votes and tabulation is unable to 90
proceed until such tie is resolved, the candidate to be eliminated shall 91
be determined by lot in accordance with regulations adopted under 92
subsection (f) of this section. 93
(B) If at the completion of tabulation a tie occurs between candidates 94
with the greatest number of votes, such tie shall be resolved in 95
accordance with the provisions of (i) section 9-446 of the general 96
statutes, in the case of a primary other than a presidential preference 97
primary, or (ii) chapter 154 of the general statutes, in the case of a 98
presidential preference primary. 99
(C) (i) If a ballot is an inactive ballot with respect to any round, no 100
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vote shall be tabulated on such ballot for such round. 101
(ii) If a ballot is an undervote, no vote shall be tabulated on such ballot 102
for all rounds. 103
(iii) If a ballot contains any repeated ranking or skipped ranking with 104
respect to any round, the vote shall be tabulated on such ballot for the 105
highest-ranked active candidate. 106
(e) For any primary conducted under ranked-choice voting, the 107
provisions of section 9-445 of the general statutes shall apply to the 108
difference between the vote for the winning candidate over the vote for 109
the active candidate having the next highest number of votes. 110
(f) The Secretary of the State shall adopt regulations, in accordance 111
with the provisions of chapter 54 of the general statutes, to implement 112
the provisions of this section. 113
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective January 1, 2026) (a) In the case of any state or 114
district convention at which a party has adopted ranked-choice voting, 115
as defined in section 1 of this act, pursuant to its party rules, for the 116
purpose of making an endorsement for nomination to a state or district 117
office, as between three or more candidates, to which such convention 118
delegates endorse no more than one such candidate: 119
(1) The call of a roll and the recording of the vote of each delegate 120
entitled to vote and voting shall not be required; and 121
(2) The determination of the per cent of the votes of the convention 122
delegates present and voting on any roll-call vote, as described in 123
section 9-386 of the general statutes, and any similar reference thereto, 124
including in sections 9-400 and 9-706 of the general statutes, shall be the 125
number of votes received in any round of tabulation by each active 126
candidate, as defined in section 1 of this act, in the round as a percentage 127
of the votes received by all active candidates in the round. 128
(b) In all such proceedings for the making of an endorsement for 129
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nomination to a state or district office, the clerk or secretary of such 130
convention shall keep a true record, in writing, of the number of votes 131
received by each active candidate in each round of tabulation and of the 132
round-by-round totals, and shall, at the conclusion of the voting and 133
tabulation process, announce the round-by-round and final results. 134
Such clerk or secretary shall file such record at the headquarters of the 135
state central committee, where it shall be preserved for a period of one 136
hundred eighty days after the adjournment of such convention, and 137
such record shall be open to public inspection at all reasonable times. 138
Sec. 3. Section 9-444 of the general statutes is repealed and the 139
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 140
(a) (1) In the case of a primary for state or district office, each person 141
certified by the Secretary of the State as provided in section 9-440, to 142
have received the greatest number of votes of the electors eligible to vote 143
in a primary for any office shall be deemed to have been chosen as the 144
nominee of such party to such office. 145
(2) In the case of a primary for a municipal office, the moderator, or 146
the head moderator, as the case may be, shall declare nominated the 147
person having the greatest number of votes for such office and, if more 148
than one person is to be nominated for the same office, he shall declare 149
nominated the persons having the greatest number of votes for such 150
office up to the number to be chosen. 151
(3) In the case of a primary for members of a town committee, such 152
moderator shall declare elected the persons having the greatest number 153
of votes for such positions up to the number to be chosen for such 154
positions. 155
(4) In the case of a primary for justice of the peace, such moderator 156
shall declare elected each person on the slate having the greatest number 157
of votes for such offices. 158
(b) (1) [In] Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, in 159
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all primaries, a plurality of the votes cast shall be sufficient to nominate 160
or elect, as the case may be. 161
(2) A major party may, pursuant to its party rules, (A) adopt ranked-162
choice voting, as defined in section 1 of this act, for the conduct of any 163
primary held on or after January 1, 2026, for any office to which electors 164
nominate no more than one candidate, and (B) implement ranked-165
choice voting procedures, as provided in section 1 of this act, at such 166
primary. The chairperson or authorized representative of any such 167
party shall provide notice to the Secretary of the State, or the Secretary's 168
designee, of such party's adoption in accordance with a process and 169
timeline established by the Secretary for the provision of such notice. 170
Sec. 4. Section 9-473 of the general statutes is repealed and the 171
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 172
(a) The secretary shall establish a process and timeline for the 173
certification, by the chairman of each party to the secretary, of the 174
number of delegates to which such party is entitled. 175
(b) Not later than the [fourteenth day before the day of the primary] 176
deadline set by the secretary pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, 177
the chairman of each party shall certify in writing to the secretary the 178
number of delegates to which such party is entitled pursuant to its rules. 179
If such rules provide that such delegates are to be chosen from districts, 180
the chairman shall also certify the number of delegates allocated to each 181
district and the number to be selected at large, if any. Such rules (1) may 182
[(1)] provide for ranked-choice voting, as defined in section 1 of this act, 183
at any presidential preference primary held on or after January 1, 2028, 184
and (2) may (A) prescribe a formula for the allocation of delegates to 185
candidates based upon the percentages of the total votes cast for, or 186
received in any round of tabulation under ranked-choice voting by, such 187
candidates at the primary, or [(2)] (B) require that all delegates shall be 188
allocated to the candidate [receiving] for whom the greatest number of 189
votes were cast, or by whom the greatest number of votes were received 190
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in any round of tabulation under ranked -choice voting, 191
notwithstanding such candidate's percentage of the total votes cast for 192
all candidates. If such rules prescribe a formula for the allocation of 193
delegates to candidates based upon the percentages of the total votes 194
cast for, or received in any round of tabulation under ranked-choice 195
voting by, such candidates at the primary, the chairman shall also certify 196
such formula and all information necessary for the application of such 197
formula to the results of the primary. 198
(c) The chairman of a party shall furnish to the secretary, upon 199
request, a written interpretation or explanation of any ranked-choice 200
voting provided for by such party's rules, or any application of [such] a 201
delegate allocation formula prescribed, under subsection (b) of this 202
section. 203
Sec. 5. Section 9-476 of the general statutes is repealed and the 204
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 205
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter or required for the 206
purposes of implementing ranked-choice voting, as defined in section 1 207
of this act, the provisions of chapter 145 and chapter 153 concerning 208
absentee voting at primaries, conduct of primaries and return and 209
tabulation of the vote at such primaries shall apply as nearly as 210
practicable and in the manner prescribed by the Secretary of the State, 211
to a presidential preference primary. 212
(b) On and after January 1, 2028, if a party's rules so provide pursuant 213
to subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of section 9-473, as amended by this 214
act, each presidential preference primary shall be conducted under 215
ranked-choice voting. The secretary shall issue written instructions for 216
the implementation of policies and procedures regarding tabulation and 217
publication of preliminary and final results, including round-by-round 218
results. Such instructions shall provide that if a candidate withdraws as 219
of the day of the primary in accordance with applicable law, any ballot 220
cast prior to the day of the primary on which such candidate was the 221
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highest-ranked candidate shall be counted as a vote for the next highest-222
ranked candidate on such ballot. Such instructions shall take into 223
account any procedures requested in writing by the chairman of the 224
party holding such primary, which procedures are reasonable, 225
compatible with the use of ranked-choice voting ballots and capable of 226
being implemented using existing voting tabulators, including any 227
associated hardware and software. The secretary shall post all such 228
written instructions on the Internet web site of the office of the Secretary 229
of the State. 230
(c) The primary officials of each party for each polling place shall be 231
as specified in section 9-436, except that (1) the appointment of assistant 232
registrars of voters and absentee ballot counters shall be permitted but 233
not required, (2) the minimum number of official checkers shall be one, 234
(3) the minimum number of voting tabulator tenders shall be one for 235
each two voting tabulators in use, (4) if two parties are holding 236
primaries and the registrars of voters of such parties so agree, such 237
registrars of voters may jointly appoint (A) one moderator of both 238
primaries and (B) one enrolled member of either party to serve as head 239
moderator of both primaries, (5) notwithstanding any reduction in the 240
number of primary officials as permitted by this section, any duty 241
required of primary officials by the general statutes may be performed 242
by one or more primary officials, at the direction of the registrar of 243
voters of the party of such officials, and (6) the registrar of voters shall 244
have the sole power to appoint such officials. In making such 245
appointments the registrar shall attempt, to the extent practicable, to 246
provide representation for each candidate at each polling place. The 247
provisions of section 9-436a shall apply to each candidate whose name 248
appears on the ballot, except that each such candidate, through such 249
candidate's authorized or known representative, may submit to the 250
registrar of voters the name of one designee as candidate checker for 251
each polling place, and the registrar of voters shall appoint such 252
designee as candidate checker for such candidate. 253
(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 9-438, the polls shall be 254
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open for voting at the primary between the hours of six o'clock a.m. and 255
eight o'clock p.m. 256
(e) The moderator or head moderator of the primary in each town 257
shall prepare duplicate head moderator returns in the manner provided 258
by section 9-440, but notwithstanding the provisions of said section, the 259
moderator or head moderator may electronically transmit such returns 260
not later than eleven fifty-nine o'clock p.m. on primary day, provided a 261
hard copy is mailed to the [Secretary of the State] secretary not later than 262
two o'clock p.m. of the day following the primary or shall hand deliver 263
one of such returns to either the [Secretary] secretary or the state police 264
by two o'clock p.m. of the day following the primary. Any moderator or 265
head moderator, as the case may be, who fails to deliver such returns to 266
either the [Secretary] secretary or the state police by such time shall pay 267
a late filing fee of fifty dollars. 268
Sec. 6. Section 9-484 of the general statutes is repealed and the 269
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective January 1, 2026): 270
(a) If a party's chairman did not certify (1) a formula pursuant to 271
section 9-473, as amended by this act, or (2) a requirement that all 272
delegates shall be allocated to the candidate receiving the greatest 273
number of votes notwithstanding such candidate's percentage of the 274
total votes cast for all candidates, the secretary shall determine the 275
number of delegates to be so allocated to each candidate of each such 276
party in accordance with the provisions of this section, provided such 277
allocations when the party rules do not provide for ranked-choice 278
voting shall be made under subsection (b) of this section and such 279
allocations when the party rules do provide for ranked-choice voting 280
shall be made under subsection (c) of this section. As used in this section, 281
"ranked-choice voting", "active candidate" and "withdrawn candidate" 282
have the same meanings as provided in section 1 of this act. 283
(b) (1) [Such determination shall be made separately for delegates to 284
be selected at large and delegates to be selected from each district. Any] 285
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For allocations under this subsection when party rules do not provide 286
for ranked-choice voting, any percentage required to be determined, in 287
accordance with the provisions of this [section] subsection, shall be 288
rounded off to the nearest one-tenth of one per cent. As used in this 289
[section] subsection, "minimum percentage" means the ratio, expressed 290
as a percentage, that the number one bears to the total number of 291
delegates to be selected, but in no event shall such percentage exceed 292
twenty-five per cent. 293
[(c)] (2) The secretary shall calculate the minimum percentage, as 294
defined in [subsection (b) of this section] subdivision (1) of this 295
subsection, using the number of delegates to be selected at large and, if 296
applicable, the number of delegates to be selected from each district 297
respectively. Except as provided in this [subsection] subdivision, a 298
candidate's percentage of the total votes cast for all candidates in the 299
state or in a district [must] is required to equal or exceed such minimum 300
percentage in order for such candidate to be allocated any at large 301
delegates or any delegates from such district, as the case may be. The 302
secretary shall determine each candidate's percentage of the total votes 303
cast for all candidates in the state and in each district. In the event two 304
or more candidates have received a percentage of such total votes cast 305
equal to or greater than the minimum percentage, the secretary shall 306
calculate an adjusted percentage, which shall be each such candidate's 307
percentage of the total votes cast for all such candidates, excluding the 308
votes cast for all other candidates. The secretary shall then calculate the 309
product of each such candidate's adjusted percentage and the total 310
number of delegates to be selected, rounding off such product to the 311
nearest integer. Such product shall be the number of delegates allocated 312
to each such candidate except as hereinafter provided. [(1)] (A) If the 313
rounding off of such products to the nearest integers causes the sum of 314
all delegates so allocated to be greater than the total number of delegates 315
to be selected at large or from the district, then one delegate shall be 316
subtracted from the number allocated to the candidate who received the 317
greatest mathematical gain from such rounding off, and if necessary one 318
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delegate shall also be subtracted from the number allocated to the 319
candidate who received the next greatest gain, and so on until the sum 320
of all delegates allocated to candidates equals the total number of 321
delegates to be so selected. [(2)] (B) If the rounding off of such products 322
to the nearest integers causes the sum of all delegates so allocated to be 323
fewer than the total number of delegates to be selected at large or from 324
the district, then one delegate shall be added to the number allocated to 325
the candidate who suffered the greatest mathematical loss from such 326
rounding off, and if necessary one delegate shall also be added to the 327
number allocated to the candidate who suffered the next greatest such 328
loss, and so on until the sum of all delegates allocated to candidates 329
equals the total number of delegates to be so selected. 330
[(d)] (3) In the event one or no candidate has received a percentage of 331
the total number of votes cast for all candidates equal to or greater than 332
the minimum percentage, the secretary shall calculate an adjusted 333
percentage for each of the candidates receiving the greatest and second 334
greatest number of votes cast for all candidates. The adjusted percentage 335
shall be such candidate's percentage of the total number of votes cast for 336
both such candidates, excluding the total number of votes cast for all 337
other candidates. The secretary shall determine the number of delegates 338
allocated to each candidate by using the same procedure as prescribed 339
in [subsection (c) of this section] subdivision (2) of this subsection. 340
(c) For allocations under this subsection when party rules do provide 341
for ranked-choice voting, the secretary shall determine the number of 342
delegates, if any, to be allocated at large to each candidate and, if 343
applicable, the number of delegates, if any, to be allocated to each 344
candidate from each district respectively. An active candidate's 345
percentage of the votes received by all active candidates in the state or 346
in a district is required to equal or exceed fifteen per cent in order for 347
such candidate to be allocated any at large delegates or any delegates 348
from such district, as the case may be. The secretary shall determine each 349
candidate's percentage of the votes received by all active candidates 350
under ranked-choice voting in the state and in each district. Each ballot 351
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shall count as one vote for the highest-ranked candidate on such ballot 352
and shall be deemed a vote for delegates pledged to support such 353
candidate in accordance with party rules or applicable provisions of this 354
title. Any rankings for withdrawn candidates shall be treated as 355
rankings for eliminated candidates. If the vote total for any active 356
candidate is less than fifteen per cent, the active candidate with the 357
fewest votes shall be eliminated and the votes for the eliminated 358
candidate shall be counted for each ballot's next highest-ranked active 359
candidate. If the vote total of all active candidates is above fifteen per 360
cent, tabulation shall be complete. For the purpose of applying the 361
provisions of section 9-482, votes cast for a candidate, as described in 362
said section, and each candidate's percentage of total votes shall be 363
determined by the secretary on the basis of the votes received in the final 364
round of tabulation. The secretary shall then calculate the product of 365
each such active candidate's percentage and the total number of 366
delegates to be selected, rounding off such product to the nearest 367
integer. Such product shall be the number of delegates allocated to each 368
such candidate except as hereinafter provided. (1) If the rounding off of 369
such products to the nearest integers causes the sum of all delegates so 370
allocated to be greater than the total number of delegates to be selected 371
at large or from the district, then one delegate shall be subtracted from 372
the number allocated to the candidate who received the greatest 373
mathematical gain from such rounding off, and if necessary one 374
delegate shall also be subtracted from the number allocated to the 375
candidate who received the next greatest gain, and so on until the sum 376
of all delegates allocated to candidates equals the total number of 377
delegates to be so selected. (2) If the rounding off of such products to the 378
nearest integers causes the sum of all delegates so allocated to be fewer 379
than the total number of delegates to be selected at large or from the 380
district, then one delegate shall be added to the number allocated to the 381
candidate who suffered the greatest mathematical loss from such 382
rounding off, and if necessary one delegate shall also be added to the 383
number allocated to the candidate who suffered the next greatest such 384
loss, and so on until the sum of all delegates allocated to candidates 385
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equals the total number of delegates to be so selected. 386
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 January 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 2 January 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 3 January 1, 2026 9-444
Sec. 4 January 1, 2026 9-473
Sec. 5 January 1, 2026 9-476
Sec. 6 January 1, 2026 9-484
Statement of Purpose:
To afford political parties the flexibility to use ranked-choice voting in
party caucuses, conventions and primaries, including presidential
preference primaries.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]