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Read. Follow. Verify.Connecticut bill authorizes ranked-choice voting for party primaries, conventions, and municipal elections starting in 2028
Last action · April 14, 2026: Favorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, SenateSponsors: Laurie Sweet and 17 others
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What This Bill Proposed
Beginning January 1, 2028, political parties and municipalities in Connecticut are permitted to use for primary elections, presidential preference primaries, municipal elections, and party conventions. The Secretary of the State is required to prescribe ballot layouts, issue implementation instructions, and establish delegate allocation formulas for ranked-choice contests.
Local governments and political parties gain the legal option to change how candidates are selected and elected, altering ballot design and vote tabulation methods for voters starting in 2028.
- Ranked-choice voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference rather than choosing only one. context
- The General Assembly regularly considers legislative measures modifying election laws and party primary procedures in Connecticut. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Municipalities
Municipalities are granted the option to adopt ranked-choice voting for local elections via a referendum.
Political parties
Political parties may incorporate ranked-choice voting into their party rules for caucuses, conventions, and primaries.
Secretary of the State
The Secretary of the State must prescribe ballot types, issue implementation instructions, adopt regulations, and calculate delegate allocations.
Key Facts
- Ranked-choice voting is authorized starting January 1, 2028, for primaries, presidential preference primaries, and municipal elections where electors elect no more than one candidate.
- Municipalities may adopt ranked-choice voting for municipal elections by a vote of the electors at a referendum.
- Major political parties may adopt ranked-choice voting for primaries and convention endorsements pursuant to their party rules.
- The Secretary of the State is directed to prescribe ballot types, instructions, layout, and orientation for ranked-choice elections.
Show all 9 facts
- In multi-round tabulation for single-winner offices, the candidate with the least votes is eliminated in each round and their votes transferred until an active candidate achieves a majority or fewer than three active candidates remain.
- If a tie occurs between candidates with the least number of votes, the candidate to be eliminated is determined by lot.
- Polls for primaries conducted under the act must remain open between six o'clock a.m. and eight o'clock p.m.
- Moderators failing to deliver head moderator returns by the specified deadline must pay a late filing fee of fifty dollars.
- Convention secretaries must record and preserve round-by-round tabulation results at the state central committee headquarters for 180 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can a municipality adopt ranked-choice voting?
What happens if a ballot contains skipped or repeated rankings?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Tabled in the Senate.
Procedural history
15 actions- Apr 14, 2026SenateFavorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, Senate
- Apr 14, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyNo New File by Committee on Appropriations
- Apr 14, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyReported Out of Legislative Commissioners' Office
- Apr 14, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyFiled with Legislative Commissioners' Office
- Apr 13, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyJoint Favorable
- Apr 8, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyImmediate Transmittal to Committee on Appropriations
Show 9 earlier actions
- Mar 30, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyFile Number 227
- Mar 30, 2026SenateSenate Calendar Number 182
- Mar 30, 2026SenateFavorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, Senate
- Mar 30, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyReported Out of Legislative Commissioners' Office
- Mar 23, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyReferred to Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis 03/30/26 12:00 PM
- Mar 12, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyFiled with Legislative Commissioners' Office
- Mar 11, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyJoint Favorable Substitute
- Feb 27, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyPublic Hearing 03/04
- Feb 26, 2026Connecticut General AssemblyCommitteeReferred to Joint Committee on Government Administration and Elections
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
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Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Introduction of Ranked-Choice Voting Framework
The bill introduces comprehensive statutory definitions and mechanics for ranked-choice voting across primaries, municipal elections, and party conventions in Connecticut.
Connected Entities
Sources
cga.ct.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz45Current news / social attention level
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