STAR voting
STAR stands for Score Then Automatic Runoff. Each voter gives every option 0 to 5 stars. The two options with the most stars go to a runoff, and the one that more voters scored higher wins.
How it works
First, the scoring round: add up everyone's stars. The two options with the most stars are the finalists.
Then the automatic runoff, with no second vote needed: look at each ballot and see which finalist it gave more stars. The finalist preferred on more ballots wins. A ballot that gave both finalists the same stars doesn't count for either.
Stars let voters show how much they like each option, not only which they like best. The runoff keeps that honest: giving your favorite 5 and everything else 0 can help your favorite reach the runoff, but in the runoff your ballot counts as one vote, however big the gap in your stars.
Where it's used
STAR voting was developed in Oregon in 2014, by reformers looking for something between score voting and ranked choice. The Independent Party of Oregon used it for its 2020 primary, and the Libertarian Party of Oregon adopted it for internal elections in 2023.
No city uses it for public elections yet. Eugene voted down a STAR measure in May 2024, and Oakridge did in November 2024, by fewer than a hundred votes.
Trade-offs
A STAR ballot takes a little more thought than ticking boxes, since every option gets a number. And with the right mix of ballots, an option that beats every other one head to head can still miss the runoff.
In return, options that lots of people like do well, as in approval, and people can say how much they like each one, a little like quadratic voting. The runoff stops a few all-or-nothing ballots from deciding the result.
On TallyLab
Every option starts at 0 stars, and a ballot needs at least one star. The results show each option's stars and the runoff between the finalists.
Ties follow the STAR rules. If options tie for a place in the runoff, the one that beats the others head to head goes through, then the one with more 5-star scores. If the runoff ties, the finalist with more stars in total wins, then the one with more 5-star scores. Only if all of that is equal does TallyLab use its random draw, which stays the same for each poll.