Municipal nonpartisan rank choice elections.

HB 49 creates a voluntary pilot program allowing Wyoming municipalities to use ranked-choice voting for nonpartisan municipal elections with more than two candidates. Participating cities or towns must notify the Secretary of State by January 1 each year and cannot hold primary elections for these races during the pilot. The bill requires ballots to list candidates with space for voters to rank preferences, and election officials must count first choices initially, then transfer votes if no candidate gets over 50% of first choices. The pilot runs starting January 1, 2024, for municipal general elections and specific municipal elections under existing law. It affects local voters in participating communities and election administrators who must follow new ballot and counting procedures.