Lexington County Chronicle
February 26, 2025
Irmo pushes for instant runoff voting
Officials say it would save time and money, promote majority support, reduce political polarization and encourage greater representation
By Sophia Sousa
At the most recent town council meeting, the Town of Irmo officially passed a resolution supporting Instant Runoff Voting (IRV). The town wants the state legislature to allow towns and municipalities the option to use this voting system.
Irmo currently uses a plurality voting system, where the candidate with the most votes wins even if they don’t have a majority. This is the method used by 117 municipalities in South Carolina.
In contrast, about 150 municipalities in the state use a majority-runoff system. Under this system, if no candidate wins a majority, a second runoff election is held two weeks later to determine the winner.
Experts argue that Instant Runoff Voting offers several benefits, including saving time and money, promoting majority support, reducing political polarization and encouraging greater representation.
Under the current system, voters choose just one candidate. With IRV, voters rank candidates in order of preference. If your first-choice candidate doesn’t win, your vote automatically transfers to your second-choice candidate.
Nicole Sanchez, president of Better Ballot S.C., explained that IRV addresses a key issue for municipalities.
“Right now municipalities have to choose between costly runoffs or risk their elected officials not securing a majority of winners, a common problem across the state,” she said. “With instant runoff voting, municipalities and voters get the best of both worlds: a way to efficiently find a majority winner without the drop off in voter participation and added expense.”
In the IRV system, if a candidate gets more than 50% (+1) of the vote in the first round, they win. If no one reaches 50% (+1), the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and the process continues until a candidate achieves a majority.
According to Better Ballot S.C., South Carolina spent over $830,000 on primary runoffs in 2018 and over $1 million in 2022. IRV would eliminate the need for expensive second elections, saving both money and time, officials say.
“Instant runoff voting ensures that elections reflect the true will of the people by allowing voters to rank candidates in order of preference, rather than being forced to choose just one,” Irmo town councilman Gabriel Penfield said. “This system ensures majority support without the cost of runoffs, eliminates the ‘lesser of two evils’ dilemma, and ensures that the winner has broad support instead of winning with a small percentage in a crowded field.”
Penfield added that this voting system would strengthen the democratic process and give voters in Irmo more power in choosing their leaders.
Frank Knapp Jr., president and CEO of the S.C. Small Business Chamber of Commerce, supported the town’s decision to support IRV.
“I expect that Irmo and many other municipalities in the state would seriously consider switching from plurality voting to majority-vote winner elections if the legislature gives them the opportunity to use Instant Runoff Voting.”