diff --git a/TODO.md b/TODO.md
index 825512e..6f319ed 100644
--- a/TODO.md
+++ b/TODO.md
@@ -3,10 +3,6 @@
 
 - [ ] **Player kicking.** Admins should be able to kick players out of the game so that it doesn't get stuck if a player vanishes. Admins can kick other admins. A kicked player's cards go to the discard.
 
-## Minor Gameplay Polish
-
-- [ ] **Dead Pi-Rat rank voting streamlined**. Don't allow voting for dead Pi-Rats. If a player's only vote options are dead, then they skip voting entirely.
-
 ## Words Words Words
 
 - [ ] **Example Play formatting.** The Example Play section of the Rules page could use a bit more formatting for legibility. Make diagrams of the card state at each step rather than just a text listing. 
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/UpkeepPhase.svelte b/frontend/src/components/UpkeepPhase.svelte
index 477b4d1..bd6a1d5 100644
--- a/frontend/src/components/UpkeepPhase.svelte
+++ b/frontend/src/components/UpkeepPhase.svelte
@@ -14,6 +14,19 @@
     // Helpers
     $: hand = state.player.hand_cards ? JSON.parse(state.player.hand_cards) : [];
 
+    // A nominee must be another living, in-play Pi-Rat: not the voter, not a
+    // previous-scene Deep, and not dead / awaiting-recruit (they'd reset to
+    // Rank 1 anyway). Mirrors crud_upkeep.is_eligible_nominee.
+    function eligibleNomineesFor(voter) {
+        return state.players.filter(p =>
+            p.id !== voter.id && p.role !== 'deep' && !p.is_dead && !p.needs_reroll
+        );
+    }
+    $: myNominees = eligibleNomineesFor(state.player);
+    $: hasVoted = !!state.votes.find(v => v.voter_player_id === state.player.id);
+    // With no eligible crewmates, the voter skips voting entirely (no deadlock).
+    $: mustVote = myNominees.length > 0;
+
     // Drag & Drop State
     let keepCards = [];
     let discardCards = [];
@@ -191,19 +204,21 @@
                 <div class="voted-confirmation-box glass-panel">
                     <p class="success-text">✔️ Voting complete! Results tallied.</p>
                 </div>
-            {:else if state.votes.find(v => v.voter_player_id === state.player.id)}
+            {:else if hasVoted}
                 <div class="voted-confirmation-box glass-panel">
                     <p class="success-text">✔️ Vote submitted! Waiting for other players to submit their nominations.</p>
                 </div>
+            {:else if !mustVote}
+                <div class="voted-confirmation-box glass-panel">
+                    <p class="info-text">No living crewmates left to nominate — you skip voting this round. Go ahead and ready up.</p>
+                </div>
             {:else}
                 <form on:submit|preventDefault={submitVote} class="vote-form inline-form">
                     <div class="form-group inline-group">
                         <select class="select-field" bind:value={selectedVoteId} required>
                             <option value="">Nominate crewmate...</option>
-                            {#each state.players as p}
-                                {#if p.id !== state.player.id && p.role !== 'deep'}
-                                    <option value={p.id}>{displayName(p)} (Rank {p.rank})</option>
-                                {/if}
+                            {#each myNominees as p}
+                                <option value={p.id}>{displayName(p)} (Rank {p.rank})</option>
                             {/each}
                         </select>
                         <button type="submit" class="btn btn-primary" disabled={voting || !selectedVoteId}>Cast Nomination</button>
@@ -218,9 +233,10 @@
                 <div class="player-chips list-chips" id="voting-roster">
                     {#each state.players as p}
                         {@const voted = state.votes.some(v => v.voter_player_id === p.id)}
-                        <div class="player-chip {voted ? 'voted-chip' : 'not-voted-chip'}">
+                        {@const skips = eligibleNomineesFor(p).length === 0}
+                        <div class="player-chip {voted || skips ? 'voted-chip' : 'not-voted-chip'}">
                             <span class="name">{displayName(p)}</span>
-                            <span class="status-badge">{voted ? 'Done' : 'Voting...'}</span>
+                            <span class="status-badge">{voted ? 'Done' : skips ? 'No vote' : 'Voting...'}</span>
                         </div>
                     {/each}
                 </div>
@@ -325,7 +341,7 @@
                 </div>
             {/if}
         {:else}
-            {#if !state.votes.find(v => v.voter_player_id === state.player.id)}
+            {#if mustVote && !hasVoted}
                 <p class="info-text gold-text" style="margin-bottom:0.5rem;">⚠️ You must nominate a crewmate above before you can ready up.</p>
                 <button class="btn btn-primary btn-large" disabled>Ready for Next Scene</button>
             {:else}
diff --git a/src/pirats/crud_upkeep.py b/src/pirats/crud_upkeep.py
index 4e24d35..471d025 100644
--- a/src/pirats/crud_upkeep.py
+++ b/src/pirats/crud_upkeep.py
@@ -10,10 +10,28 @@ from .crud_base import (
 
 # --- Between Scenes Operations ---
 
+def is_eligible_nominee(voter, nominee) -> bool:
+    """A rank-up nominee must be another living, in-play Pi-Rat. Excludes the
+    voter, previous-scene Deep players, and dead / awaiting-recruit players
+    (ranking them up is wasted — recruits reset to Rank 1)."""
+    return (
+        nominee.id != voter.id
+        and nominee.role != "deep"
+        and not nominee.is_dead
+        and not nominee.needs_reroll
+    )
+
+def eligible_vote_nominees(game: Game, voter) -> list:
+    """The crewmates `voter` may nominate to rank up. An empty list means the
+    voter has no valid pick and skips voting entirely (no deadlock)."""
+    return [p for p in game.players if is_eligible_nominee(voter, p)]
+
 def submit_rank_vote(db: Session, game_id: str, voter_id: str, nominated_id: str) -> Tuple[bool, str]:
     """
     Every Player (including last scene's Deep Players) nominates one *other* Pi-Rat
-    Player to Rank up. Deep Players from the previous scene cannot be nominated.
+    Player to Rank up. Deep Players from the previous scene cannot be nominated,
+    nor can dead or awaiting-recruit Pi-Rats. A voter whose only options are
+    ineligible skips voting (the frontend lets them ready up without a vote).
     """
     voter = get_player(db, voter_id)
     nominee = get_player(db, nominated_id)
@@ -23,8 +41,8 @@ def submit_rank_vote(db: Session, game_id: str, voter_id: str, nominated_id: str
         return False, "You cannot nominate yourself. Nice try."
     if nominee.role == "deep":
         return False, "Deep Players from the previous scene cannot be nominated."
-    # Dead/re-rolling players stay nominable on purpose: in small crews they can
-    # be a voter's only legal pick, and blocking them would deadlock the vote.
+    if nominee.is_dead or nominee.needs_reroll:
+        return False, "You can't nominate a Pi-Rat who's out of play. Pick a living crewmate."
 
     # Remove any existing vote by this voter for this game
     existing = db.exec(
diff --git a/tests/test_game.py b/tests/test_game.py
index 4923455..4be7a63 100644
--- a/tests/test_game.py
+++ b/tests/test_game.py
@@ -1048,6 +1048,39 @@ def test_vote_validation(session):
     ok, msg = crud.submit_rank_vote(session, game.id, p1.id, p2.id)
     assert ok
 
+    # Dead and awaiting-recruit Pi-Rats can't be nominated
+    p3.is_dead = True
+    session.add(p3)
+    session.commit()
+    ok, msg = crud.submit_rank_vote(session, game.id, p1.id, p3.id)
+    assert not ok
+    p3.is_dead = False
+    p3.needs_reroll = True
+    session.add(p3)
+    session.commit()
+    ok, msg = crud.submit_rank_vote(session, game.id, p1.id, p3.id)
+    assert not ok
+
+def test_vote_skips_when_only_dead_options(session):
+    # 3-player crew, one living Pi-Rat whose only crewmates are the previous
+    # Deep and a dead rat: they have no eligible nominee and skip voting.
+    game = crud.create_game(session)
+    deep = crud.add_player(session, game.id, "Deep")
+    living = crud.add_player(session, game.id, "Living")
+    dead = crud.add_player(session, game.id, "Dead")
+    deep.role = "deep"
+    living.role = "pirat"
+    dead.role = "pirat"
+    dead.is_dead = True
+    session.add_all([deep, living, dead])
+    session.commit()
+
+    # The living Pi-Rat has no one valid to nominate
+    assert crud.eligible_vote_nominees(game, living) == []
+    # The Deep can still nominate the living Pi-Rat
+    nominees = crud.eligible_vote_nominees(game, deep)
+    assert [p.id for p in nominees] == [living.id]
+
 def test_rank_up_draws_immediately(session):
     game, deep, (p2, p3) = make_scene_game(session, num_pirats=2)
     # p2 is rank 1 (lowest -> max 2), p3 is rank 2 (highest -> max 4)