Salem City Council Backs Ranked-Choice Voting Petition

SALEM, MA — The Salem City Council voted unanimously to approve a home rule petition that would authorize the adoption of ranked-choice voting for municipal elections in the Witch City.

The approved petition now moves to the Massachusetts Legislature for consideration.

The vote came after months of public discussion, committee review and community engagement about whether ranked choice voting could strengthen local elections and help ensure elected officials earn broad voter support.

Ranked choice voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference instead of choosing only one candidate. If no candidate receives a majority of first-choice votes, lower-performing candidates are eliminated and those voters' next choices are counted until a candidate earns majority support.

The Salem vote places the city among a growing number of Massachusetts communities pursuing ranked choice voting through local home rule petitions and legislative action.

Voter Choice Massachusetts worked alongside local advocates and elected officials during Salem's process and plans to continue supporting residents as the proposal advances on Beacon Hill.

"Salem has demonstrated thoughtful local leadership throughout this process," said Edwyn Shoemaker, Executive Director of Voter Choice Massachusetts. "Councilors took the time to listen, ask questions, evaluate different approaches, and ultimately reached unanimous agreement on a path forward.

"We are grateful for their leadership and look forward to supporting Salem as the process continues."

The Council's action does not by itself put the new voting system in place. The next step is review by the Massachusetts Legislature, which will consider the home rule petition submitted by Salem.

For Salem residents, the vote marks a formal local step in a longer state approval process tied to how the city could run future municipal elections.