What is a ranked-choice ballot in eBallot Essential?
A ranked-choice ballot lets your voters rank their choices based on their preference.
Points are assigned to each rank. They are then added up to determine who or what choices won out over others.
You can use our default point system or specify your own custom point system.
How to build a ranked-choice ballot
Open your ballot and visit the Settings tab
Under Ballot Type, select Voting and fill out the rest of the ballot settings (e.g. Anonymous Voting, Schedule)
Go to the Questions tab. Under Question Type, select Ranked.
You'll also need to choose between a Default or Custom ranked ballot. Fill out the rest of the options on this page and click Save.
Question type option | What it means |
Ranked + Default | The point value assigned to each rank will be automatically determined by the number of choices assigned to the question |
Ranked + Custom | Lets you assign custom point values to each choice |
The differences between a Ranked + Default vs. Ranked + Custom ballot
The options for a Ranked + Custom question type
Click on Add Choice to start adding choice options.
Select the appropriate choice type.
Note: The Write-In choice type can't be used on a Ranked Choice question.
Head to the Voters tab.
If you want to upload your entire list of voters onto the ballot, click the Search button.
To upload voters from a previous ballot, use the dropdown menu to select that ballot and click Import
Use the Email tab to send voter notification emails to all eligible voters.
If you only want to alert a segment of your voter list, adjust who the emails will go to using the dropdown menu
Click Activate Ballot to make your ballot go live. Keep an eye on how the nomination voting unfolds by visiting the Reports tab > Results.
