Arlington County Board elections will continue to use ranked-choice voting through at least 2027.
County Board members unanimously opted for a two-year extension of the pilot program that has been in place since 2024 — coming up short of advocates’ requests to make the switch permanent for all future general elections.
“I know that’s not satisfying” to proponents of using the method permanently, Board Chair Matt de Ferranti acknowledged. However, he said limiting the extension would provide more time to conduct outreach and gather public input.
State law changed in 2020 to allow Virginia jurisdictions to use ranked-choice voting to select their governing bodies. All other elections statewide must use the more traditional format, where the winner of the most votes wins even if that candidate does not reach a majority.
Arlington was the first jurisdiction to take advantage of the legislation when Board members changed the Democratic County Board primary to ranked choice in 2023.
Because that was the only point in Arlington’s four-year election cycle when two Board seats were on the ballot, making the switch that year confused and irritated some voters. As a result, Board members backed away from using it in the 2023 general election.
That two-elections-on-one-ballot year of the four-year cycle returns next year.
“We have a big lift ahead of the 2027 election, because it is so different” from other years, Board member Susan Cunningham said.
Because Arlington has such a strong concentration of Democratic voters, ranked-choice voting has not impacted the two general elections where it was used. In 2024, Julius “JD” Spain, Sr., received 58% of the first-round vote. Last November, Takis Karantonis garnered 65% of the vote in a five-candidate race.
The format switch is likely to have a more significant impact in Democratic primaries, particularly in years when there are two seats elected on a single ballot.
In 2027, the seats currently occupied by Cunningham and Maureen Coffey will be on the ballot. A more competitive race, either in the primary or general election, would make re-election bids more difficult.
“We are voting against our self-interest, because our biggest self-interest is for democracy,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham did not indicate whether she was considering running for a second four-year term. Coffey, on the other hand, said “the odds of me being on the ballot in 2027 are high.”
The practical effects of County Board members continuing ranked-choice voting on a piecemeal basis, rather than making it the default method for County Board elections, may not amount to much.
Even if the Board had made the change permanent, it isn’t set in stone. A future County Board could always reverse the decision.
A survey funded by the county government and conducted immediately after the 2025 election found broad support for ranked choice. But critics complained the survey had been outsourced to a group that supports the method.
An earlier, non-scientific feedback survey conducted by the county government in 2024 found viewpoints more evenly split between proponents and opponents.
Among other jurisdictions, Charlottesville moved forward with ranked choice in its Democratic City Council primary last year. Other jurisdictions, including Falls Church, are considering a switch, but none have implemented it.
Pushing further action to 2027 also will give county leaders time to consider potential changes to Arlington’s nearly century-old government form.
Board members are expected to set up a task force this summer to consider governance issues and ultimately return with recommendations.
Arlington’s current election equipment limits voters to ranking no more than three choices. That will expand to 10 when new equipment is placed into service, likely next year, county elections director Gretchen Reinemeyer told Board members.
