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Ranked-Choice voting was passed by the voters as an amendment to the City Charter in March of 2002. Ranked-choice voting allows San Francisco voters to rank up to three candidates for the same office

Who is elected using ranked-choice voting?

San Francisco voters use ranked-choice voting to elect the Mayor, Sheriff, District Attorney, City Attorney, Treasurer, Assessor-Recorder, Public Defender, and Members of the Board of Supervisors.

How do I mark the ranked-choice ballot?

The ranked-choice ballot lists the names of all the candidates in three repeating columns.

1. To mark the ranked-choice ballot, select your first-choice candidate in the first column by completing the arrow pointing to your choice.
   
2. To indicate a second choice, select a different candidate in the second column by completing the arrow pointing to you choice.
   
3. To indicate a third choice, select a different candidate in the third column by completing the arrow pointing to you choice.

Write-In Candidates:

If you wish to vote for a qualified write-in candidate for any of your three choices, write the person's name on the line provided and complete the arrow pointing to you choice.

When marking the ranked-choice ballot, keep in mind:

• You may--but are not required to--rank up to three candidates. If there are fewer than three candidates for the same office, or to rank fewer than three candidates, leave any of the remaining columns blank.
  
• If you select the same candidate in more than one column, that vote for that candidate will count only once.
  
• Your second choice will be counted only if your first-choice candidate has been eliminated. Your third choice will be counted only if BOTH your first-choice and second-choice candidates have been eliminated.

How ranked-choice voting works:

• To start, every first-choice selection is counted. Any candidate who receives a majority (more than 50%) of the first-choice selections is declared the winner.
  
• If no candidate receives a more than 50% of the first-choice selections, the candidate who received the fewest number of first-choice selections is eliminated.
  
• Voters who selected the eliminated candidate as their first choice will have their vote transferred to their second choice.
  
• The votes are then recounted. If any remaining candidate receives more than 50% of the votes, he or she is declared the winner.
  
• If no remaining candidate receives more than 50% of the votes, the process of eliminating candidates and transferring votes to the next ranked candidate is repeated until one candidate has a winning majority.

Ranked-Choice Voting Interactive Demonstration    
View a demonstration of ranked-choice voting, including an interactive explanation on how to correctly mark the ranked-choice ballot.

Ranked-Choice Voting Voter Education Materials

Demonstration Ballot (PDF)    
This is a sample of what the ranked-choice ballot looks like.

Ranked-Choice Voting Tri-fold Brochure (PDF):   
This brochure explains how to mark the ranked-choice ballot and how votes are counted.

San Franicso Charter Section 13.102
The Charter that section governs ranked-choice voting in San Francisco.