In a ranked-choice ballot, voters pick their preferred candidate. But unlike regular ballots, in this system, voters also pick their second and third choice candidates. Those picks are important if no candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote during the initial counting.
[Ads /]
Jean Quan was elected mayor of Oakland even though she did not have the majority of first place votes. That's because when second and third choices were counted, she came out ahead.
STILL CONFUSED? No problem. Here's a more in-depth explanation by Kristen Sze
Election Day: Here's how ranked-choice voting works
[Ads /]
Take a look at the latest stories and videos about the election.