Pierce Atwood Successfully Argues Before Maine Supreme Judicial Court: Ranked-Choice Voting Law Unconstitutional

Pierce Atwood attorneys successfully represented the Maine House Republicans and the Maine Heritage Policy Center before the Supreme Judicial Court regarding the validity of Maine’s ranked-choice voting law. Joshua Dunlap, who presented the parties’ argument before the SJC (initial brief, responsive brief), argued that the ranked-choice voting law was invalid because it violated the Maine Constitution’s plurality vote requirement. In a first-in-the nation ruling, the SJC unanimously agreed. The ruling has national implications for proposed ranked choice voting laws in states that have similar constitutional provisions, and has drawn widespread commentary.

In November 2016, Mainers approved a ballot question implementing a ranked-choice voting system. Ranked-choice voting effectively implements an “instant runoff” that eliminates candidates until one receives a majority of the votes. The Ranked Choice Voting Act would apply to elections for U.S. Senate, U.S. Representative, governor, state senate, and state representative. The SJC’s ruling addressed the validity of the Act as it applied to state officials.