[EM] 12/22/02 - Markus Schulze Wrote and Wrote again:

[Markus Schulze]

Dear participants,

Germany uses MMP; since 1953, no independent candidate has been
elected to the German Bundestag. Ireland uses STV in 3- to 5-seat
districts; in average, 5 of the ca. 160 MPs are independents.

Adam wrote (23 Dec 2002):
> In open list PR, candidates don't have to play nice to move up
> the list, since the voters decide which candidates on the list
> get elected.

When you don't play nice you won't even get on the list.

Adam wrote (23 Dec 2002):
> Also, in theory one could run as an independent in list PR,
> although it's unlikely that a single candidate would break the
> quota.

In STV, a dissident candidate takes away from his home party
only as many votes as he needs to get elected. If this dissident
candidate doesn't get elected, then he doesn't take away any votes
at all. In so far as dissident candidates (when they are re-elected)
usually rejoin their home party, dissident candidates don't hurt
their home party at all. Therefore, the whole society is more
tolerant to dissidents in STV than in list PR.

Markus Schulze

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