Alaska politics, specifically the state's election process, could be radically changed in November if residents of the state get the choice to do so. 

According to Fox News, the state's extremely controversial ranked choice voting system could go away after the next election after the state's supreme court allowed the question to appear on the November ballot.

Many celebrated the state's high court upholding a lower court ruling that would allow the question on the upcoming ballot.

Three Alaska residents challenged the ballot measure, arguing that it made it that far due to allegedly defective petitions.

Legal battles

The push to do away with RCV has been in the works for some time. Fox News explained how the repeal measure made it as far as it did.

Just Won in the Alaska Supreme Court. Alaska will be voting on the Repeal of Ranked Choice Voting in November. pic.twitter.com/cIbZPKtLLk

— 907Honest (@907Honest) August 22, 2024

Fox noted:

Alaska’s Division of Elections certified in March that enough signatures had been collected to qualify the repeal initiative after the agency allowed petitioners to fix notarized errors in their paperwork.

The outlet also explained how RCV works. Conservatives have fought to do away with the process, citing recent elections where Democrats won but probably shouldn't have.

The practice, praised as a way to help moderate candidates, changes the election tabulation system from a simple majority framework to one that holds multiple rounds of counting.

In the first round, totals for each candidate are tabulated, and the candidate with the fewest "first votes" is eliminated. The "second votes" of that candidate’s supporters are added to the totals of the remaining candidates, round after round, until a winner is decided.

Conservative critics pointed to a situation in 2022 after Rep. Mary Peltola (D-AK) won in a shocking upset over six-decade GOP lawmaker Don Young, who died later that year at 88. Former Gov. Sarah Palin and Nick Begich III (D) were able to collectively garner more votes than Peltola but still lost.

There have been several other examples of election outcomes that, under a regular system, would not have happened.

Party system "destroyed"

Judy Eledge, a former schoolteacher and conservative activist, explained why she believes the system needs to be done away with for good.

"You basically don't get your first choice of who you want to win, and it enables people that otherwise would never win anything," she explained.

Eledge added, "It gives them enough to win and basically just destroys the party system within the state when it comes to elections."

Only time will tell if Alaskan voters agree and get rid of it in November.