H4916

Authorizing ranked choice voting in the town of Bedford

Introduced·1/8/26
Introduced Text

Authorizes ranked choice voting for all town offices in Bedford, Massachusetts, except for single-seat offices with two or fewer candidates.

This bill authorizes the use of ranked choice voting for all town offices in Bedford, Massachusetts, except for single-seat offices with two or fewer candidates and multi-seat offices with a number of candidates equal to or less than the number of seats to be filled. Ranked choice voting allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate receives a majority in a single-seat election, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed based on the next preferences indicated on the ballots.

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  • Core Provisions
  • Implementation
  • Impact
  • Legal Framework
  • Critical Issues

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Where it stands

Current
In committee
Next
Committee decision

Sponsors

D
1
0
Democratic CaucusRepublican Caucus

Calendar

Feb 10

1:00 PM

Joint Committee on Election Laws Hearing

History

May 11

House

Accompanied a study order, see H5413

Jan 29

Joint

Hearing scheduled for 02/10/2026 from 01:00 PM-05:00 PM in B-1

Jan 12

Senate

Senate concurred