Moritz College of Law

Consensus Choice Voting Conference

At this public conference, Election Law at Ohio State (ELOSU) will bring together leading scholars, researchers, and policymakers to examine Consensus Choice voting and its potential role in democratic governance.
 
The conference will consider Consensus Choice voting from a national perspective and focus on the specifics of Ohio's Senate Bill 395, which would establish a top-three primary and a head-to-head general election. Panels will address both the theoretical foundations and the practical implications of the method, which is intended to identify candidates with the broadest public support and reduce political polarization.
 
A centerpiece of the conference will be the unveiling of results from a new study of informed public opinion on the voting method. Co-directed by ELOSU and Stanford University's Deliberative Democracy Lab, it is the first national Deliberative Poll on Consensus Choice voting, assessing how voters evaluate the method after reviewing expert briefing materials and participating in moderated deliberations.
Date
Oct 2, 2026
Time
8:30 am to 4:00 pm ET
Location
Drinko 130 Saxbe Auditorium
Audience
Topics
Contact
Issrah Saleh
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About the Conference

Most voting systems ask which candidate is a voter's favorite. Consensus Choice voting asks a different question: which candidate would a majority prefer over every other candidate on the ballot? Supporters argue that electing the candidate who wins those head-to-head comparisons rewards broad appeal rather than intensity of support, and produces winners who represent more of the electorate. Critics raise questions about tabulation, ballot design, and whether voters would find the method intelligible.

On October 2, Election Law at Ohio State (ELOSU) will convene scholars, researchers, and policymakers at the Moritz College of Law to work through those questions. Panels will take up the democratic theory underlying Consensus Choice voting, how parties and candidates would behave under it, and what the data shows about voter response. A closing panel turns to Ohio Senate Bill 395, which would establish a top-three primary and a head-to-head general election, and what adopting it would require of the state's election officials.

The day will also feature the release of the first national Deliberative Poll on Consensus Choice voting, co-directed by ELOSU and Stanford University's Deliberative Democracy Lab. Unlike a standard survey, the study measures opinion after participants review expert briefing materials and take part in moderated deliberations, which makes it the closest available read on what an informed electorate thinks of the reform.



 

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