Instant run-off voting, also called the plurality with elimination, is a modification of the plurality method. This method removes the candidate with the least first-place votes, and the votes for the now-eliminated candidate are redistributed to the voter groups’ next choice. It continues until a candidate gets the majority (> 50%).
| # Voters | 41 | 25 | 13 | 26 | 30 | 15 |
| 1st Choice | L | L | F | F | C | C |
| 2nd Choice | F | C | L | C | F | L |
| 3rd Choice | C | F | C | L | L | F |
Look at the previous example: L (for library) wins after getting 66 out of the possible 150 votes. For a majority, a candidate must get 76 votes.
L: 66
F: 39
C: 45
IRV method eliminated the last one, F. The table now looks like the following.
| # Voters | 41 | 25 | 13 | 26 | 30 | 15 |
| 1st Choice | L | L | C | C | ||
| 2nd Choice | C | L | C | L | ||
| 3rd Choice | C | C | L | L |
The two empty entries against the 1st choice now go to the ones below – 13 to L and 26 to C. The updated votes are:
L: 79
C: 71
L now becomes the winner of the Instant run-off voting method.
