Midterm Elections

Representative Files Lawsuit Over Maine's Ranked Voting System

The state's ballots ask voters to rank politicians from favorite to least favorite.

Representative Files Lawsuit Over Maine's Ranked Voting System
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A representative in Maine is suing to halt the use of the state's ranked-choice voting system.

Rep. Bruce Poliquin, along with three Republican voters, filed a lawsuit in federal court on Tuesday alleging the system violates the Constitution.

Maine approved the system in 2016. Voters are asked to rank politicians from favorite to least favorite on their ballot instead of choosing a single candidate.

Poliquin argues he should have beaten Democrat Jared Golden in the state's 2nd Congressional District race because he had the most first-choice votes. But under the ranked system a candidate needs more than 50 percent of first-choice votes to win outright, and neither candidate has that.

Golden's campaign called the lawsuit "an affront to the law and to the people of Maine." Golden said Poliquin should have filed the lawsuit before the midterm elections.