Date of Award

8-2025

Degree Type

Report

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Political Science

Committee Chair(s)

Damon Cann (Committee Chair)

Committee

Damon Cann

Committee

Robert Ross

Committee

Michael Lyons

Abstract

Ranked-Choice Voting (RCV) is a voting method used in few cities in the United States. There has recently been an increase in interest in adoption of the voting method in other cities using pilot programs, much like the one introduced in Utah. Ranked-Choice Voting has become a topic of contention with strong disapproval coming from opponents of the voting system. The questions are why there is disdain for Ranked-Choice Voting, and why such disdain seems to exist more heavily in Republican camps. Public opinion polling from “likely and confirmed Utah voters” in Salt Lake, Utah, and Grand Counties, conducted by Y2 Analytics yields results that illustrate a higher level of disapproval for Ranked-Choice Voting amongst Republicans than Democrats and independents. One of the main reasons why Republicans have a higher level of disapproval for Ranked-Choice Voting is national elite signaling. This paper will focus on how elite signaling amongst Republican national elites influences the opinion of Ranked-Choice Voting. Various studies exist regarding the pros and cons of RCV, but there is an absence of extensive literature about political ideologies and national elite signaling and how opinions on voting systems are affected by it. Using demographics such as age, education, race, and political ideology and comparing them to favorability ratings of plurality and RCV voting systems will demonstrate the effects that the various demographics have on opinions regarding voting systems. Beyond this, an examination of Republican national elite rhetoric regarding RCV will help draw conclusions on how these opinions are carried over into individual opinions regarding the voting system, even when these opinions exist contrary to what may be of the most benefit to the political party.

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