How GOP voting bill could change elections in these 2 states

House Republicans unveiled a sweeping elections reform bill on Thursday that would change how people vote in elections in Alaska and Maine.

The “Make Elections Great Again Act”, introduced by Representative Bryan Steil, a Wisconsin Republican, would end ranked choice voting in all federal elections.

Alaska and Maine are the only two states to use ranked choice voting for statewide elections, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).

Why It Matters

The legislation proposes sweeping changes to the country’s voting laws in a bid to impose stricter requirements and comes as the Trump administration is turning its attention toward election issues before the November’s midterm elections, when control of Congress will be at stake.

President Donald Trump has long wanted to change how elections are run in the United States, continuing to insist, without any substantive evidence, that widespread fraud cost him the 2020 election.

What To Know

According to the text of the bill, which was introduced on Friday, a state “may not carry out a general election for Federal office in the State” using a voting system that “permits a voter to vote for more than one candidate for the same office, “permits a voter to rank multiple candidates for the same office” or “reallocates the vote of a voter from one candidate to another candidate for the same office.’’

Under ranked choice voting, voters rank multiple candidates in order of preference. If no one receives a majority of first place votes, then candidates who receive the fewest votes are eliminated and their votes redistributed to people’s next choices.

Supporters of ranked choice voting argue it helps ensure a majority winner without separate runoff elections and reduces spoiler effects from third party candidates, according to the NCSL.

But opponents say it is confusing for voters and that it violates the principle of one person, one vote, because not all voters rank every candidate.

If enacted, the bill would alter how federal ballots are cast and counted in Maine and Alaska.

Maine uses ranked choice voting for elections for the U.S. House and Senate, governor and state legislators as well as presidential primaries, while Alaska uses the system for all general elections, according to the NCSL.

The bill also includes requirements that people present a photo ID before they vote and that states verify the citizenship of individuals when they register to vote, starting next year.

It would also require states to use “auditable” paper ballots in elections this fall, which most states already do. And it would also prohibit states from mailing ballots to all voters through universal vote-by-mail systems.

What People Are Saying

Representative Bryan Steil, chairman of the House Administration Committee, said in a statement: “Americans should be confident their elections are being run with integrity—including commonsense voter ID requirements, clean voter rolls, and citizenship verification.

“These reforms will improve voter confidence, bolster election integrity, and make it easy to vote, but hard to cheat.”

Representative Joe Morelle, the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, said in a statement: “President Trump and House Republicans are terrified of the American people. They are desperate to rig the system so they can choose their voters. This bill is their latest attempt to block millions of Americans from exercising their right to vote. I will fight this bill at every turn.”

Stephen Richer, a Republican who clashed with Trump over the president’s false election conspiracy theories while he was the recorder in Maricopa County, Arizona, wrote on X that the legislation “flattens federalism, and takes away many rights from the states.”