WI SB594

Local governmental units (counties, cities, villages, towns, and school districts) may adopt ranked-choice voting for all local nonpartisan elections by ordinance or resolution, excluding recall elections

Voters rank candidates in order of preference; if no candidate receives a majority of first-choice votes, the lowest-ranked candidate is eliminated and their votes are redistributed to voters' next choices until one candidate achieves a majority

Local governments adopting ranked-choice voting would eliminate primary elections for those offices; governing bodies must notify the Elections Commission at least 120 days before the first election using the new system

For multiple-seat elections, winners are determined using a threshold formula (total votes divided by seats plus one, then adding one) with surplus votes transferred using the Weighted Inclusive Gregory Method

The Elections Commission is authorized to make expenditures and provide grants to local governments for implementing ranked-choice voting, including equipment and software updates; the law would first apply to the 2027 spring primary and election