How many of your tax dollars go to runoff elections?
Tomorrow is Tax Day, and we all want our tax dollars to be spent efficiently. Much of our annual tax bill covers essential government services – like schools, fire departments, and roads. One area where our tax dollars are not spent efficiently? Runoff elections.
Last December alone, runoffs in Georgia, New Mexico, and Florida cost taxpayers over $5 million – money that could be saved by switching to ranked choice voting (RCV). That money could be used much better – like providing childcare to 300 children in Georgia, hiring 30 new teachers in New Mexico, or hiring a dozen new firefighters in Florida.
Sign up for the latest news from the ranked choice voting movement, or get involved in your community.
The problem
Many cities, counties, and states hold delayed runoffs when no candidate earns a certain share of votes – usually 50%. Runoffs are essentially a redo of the same election, but limited to just to the top two candidates. Runoffs cost millions of dollars each election cycle by duplicating key election costs – requiring equipment and poll workers to be brought out again for the same contest.
Runoff elections have a worthy goal: ensuring election winners have majority support. But they often fail to do so because many voters don’t return to the polls. In 2024 primary runoffs, for instance, runoff turnout fell by a median of 63% from the initial primary.
Let’s look at three examples of runoffs held last December, and how that taxpayer money could have been spent differently:
| Jurisdiction | Runoff cost | Possible use for funds |
|---|---|---|
| Fulton County, GA | $2.4 million | Provide a year of childcare to about 300 children |
| Miami-Dade County, FL | $1.2 million | Hire a dozen firefighters |
| Albuquerque, NM | $1.8 million | Hire up to 30 new public school teachers |
The solution
Thankfully, there’s an easy way to ditch costly, delayed runoffs and put tax dollars to better use – ranked choice voting, also called “instant runoff voting.” RCV is a better, faster, cheaper alternative to runoffs. It ensures winning candidates have majority support in a single, high-turnout election, saving money for taxpayers and time for voters.
2026 will also see its share of expensive runoff elections. On May 26, Texas taxpayers will foot a multi-million dollar bill for a statewide runoff for the Republican U.S. Senate primary. In 2024, a runoff for just eight of the Texas’ 38 congressional districts cost the state $5.1 million. That means a statewide runoff like this could cost as much as $24 million.
For many, paying taxes is an annual annoyance. Other Americans may take pride in paying taxes, sharing Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes’ view that “taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society.”
No matter which camp we fall in, we can rest a bit easier knowing our tax dollars are spent wisely. Switching from delayed runoffs to ranked choice voting is a simple way to spend our tax dollars more responsibly.
