Newburgh, NY adopts proportional ranked choice voting

On February 25, the Town of Newburgh adopted proportional ranked choice voting to resolve a claim under the New York Voting Rights Act (NYVRA). This makes Newburgh the first jurisdiction to resolve a voting rights claim under the NYVRA, and the second jurisdiction in New York State to adopt ranked choice voting. The NYVRA was enacted in 2022. 

Previously, members of the Newburgh Town Council were elected using plurality block voting. Block voting lets the largest group of voters choose every member of an elected body. It typically dilutes the voting power of any voters who do not belong to the largest interest group in a jurisdiction – these are often voters of color.

In 2024, six Black and Hispanic voters in the Town of Newburgh filed suit, represented by the law firm Abrams Fensterman and the Harvard Election Law Clinic. They claimed that the existing block voting system violated the NYVRA by diluting the power of their votes. In February, the plaintiffs and town reached a settlement to switch to proportional ranked choice voting, which is available as a remedy under the NYVRA and five other state voting rights acts.  

In some communities around the country, voting rights claims have been resolved by switching from at-large elections to single-member districts. However, this remedy only works when voters of color live concentrated in specific neighborhoods; in Newburgh, Black and Hispanic voters are more evenly spread out. Proportional RCV provides fair representation to voters of color without switching to single-member districts. (FairVote provided an initial analysis informing the plaintiffs of the benefits of proportional ranked choice voting as a potential voting rights remedy in early 2024.)

Newburgh will implement proportional ranked choice voting for Town Council elections starting in November 2027. The Town Council consists of four members; two seats appear on the ballot every two years, with members elected to four-year terms. The adoption of ranked choice voting will not alter the election schedule. 

Newburgh will be the second jurisdiction in New York State that uses ranked choice voting. New York City, the state and nation’s most populous city, has used single-winner ranked choice voting for its primary elections since 2021. In polling following the 2025 election, 96% of voters in New York City said their ballot was simple to complete, and 76% wanted to keep RCV or expand it to general elections. (New York City also had a successful history with proportional ranked choice voting in the mid-20th century.)

For more information about ranked choice voting in the Empire State, visit Common Cause NY.