WHEREAS, America has operated on a well understood and relatively uniform election system that has been implemented over two hundred years to support our Constitutional Republic; and
WHEREAS, the political parties in America have created the world’s largest representative forums for debate among thousands of factions of American citizens all across the nation; and
WHEREAS, traditional American primary and general elections ensure that voters who support one candidate, not a plurality of candidates, are heard clearly, while ranked choice voting schemes open elections to “ballot exhaustion” or the disenfranchisement of voters who choose not to support multiple candidates who do not clearly represent their values; and
WHEREAS, the grassroots activists of the Republican Party of Texas have made it abundantly clear that we need to keep voting simple and secure; and
WHEREAS, educating voters on the confusing processes that vary by state has cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars for educational efforts that have provided ineffective results; and
WHEREAS, states and communities where ranked choice voting has been tested have seen decreased voter participation, and in many cases, elections have resulted in more discarded votes than counted votes; and
WHEREAS, ranked choice voting often results in additional tabulation delays leading to days or weeks of additional counting while depending exclusively on technology without traceable ballots to support determined winners; and
WHEREAS, supporters of ranked choice voting seek to eliminate or disempower party primaries; and
WHEREAS, the Republican National Committee (RNC) unanimously adopted a similar resolution calling for opposition to ranked choice voting at the RNC 2023 Winter Meeting; now
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Republican Party of Texas rejects ranked choice voting and similar schemes that increase election distrust, voter suppression, and disenfranchisement, that eliminate the historical political party system, and that depend on costly and confusing technology implemented by unelected bureaucrats; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Republican Party of Texas calls on the State Legislature and voters to oppose ranked choice or preferential voting in every locality and level of government and to return elections to easier systems that have worked for centuries for fair and transparent elections; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Republican Party of Texas supports efforts to ban such voting methods through support of SB 921 authored by Senator Bryan Hughes.
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