Reality: IRV has brought more diverse representation to San Francisco and other places.

IRV is a relatively simple and doable change that can have a potentially big impact on voter participation, cost of elections and campaigning, the way campaigns are conducted and – ultimately – on representation. 

IRV does not “throw out” incumbents as some fear. Nor does it benefit them any more than the current system. Incumbency is the most likely predictor of winning an election under traditional as well as IRV elections. But this doesn’t make the campaigns that challenge the incumbent irrelevant. Candidates often do not win their first race, but the experience and exposure gained from that campaign is critical to the success of a future campaign. Under IRV, all of the candidates benefit from competing for votes in one decisive election and are not weeded out prematurely by a small sliver of voters who turnout for primary elections.

Also, because concerns about "spoiler" candidacies disappear with IRV, worthy candidates who might have refrained from running in a plurality election can offer themselves to voters, and voters can vote for the candidate they think is best without worrying about wasting their vote.

And more important than the candidates, the people win. They vote once, their votes are equal, they get to chose from the larger group instead of a winnowed group from a small electorate, and it saves their city money.

IRV is especially valuable in open seat races where 3 or more candidates often compete without an incumbent advantage. Over time, the composition of an elected position or board can change to better mirror the population it serves. This is being seen in San Francisco now, after six years of IRV elections. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is more diverse than it has been in previous years: it now has 7 out of 11 persons of color, which is the most ever, and three women, which is more than in prior years. Click here for more information.

Additional factors may contribute to the growing diversity in representation, but IRV is likely a key influence, as was the change from at-large to district-based elections in the 1990s in creating a more diverse board. With regard to political diversity, San Francisco is a predominantly Democratic city so that party affiliation is still strong with 10 Democrats and one Green Party member. 

Two other examples demonstrate how IRV impacts representation and boosts the electoral chances for candidates representing communities of color and women.

• In 1990, Mary Robinson was elected the president of Ireland under IRV. She was the second-place finisher in a 3- way contest and captured the majority of votes in the “instant” runoff.
• In 1975, Ann Arbor elected its first African American mayor under IRV. The outcome led to an immediate legal challenge by the incumbent political establishment. The lawsuit failed, but opponents successfully repealed IRV a year later in a low turn-out special election.

Finally, in Cambridge, where a multi-seat form of IRV has been used for over half a decade in multi-seat elections, elections have consistently resulted in strong representation of ethnic minorities and women on the city council and school board. Click here for more information.