[EM] Request comments on MMP?

[Olli Salmi]

At 09:26 +0100 5.8.2003, James Gilmour wrote:
>Different rules can produce different results:
>d'Hondt favours the larger parties, Sante-Lague favours the smaller 
>parties, while modified
>Sante-Lague tries to be neutral

D'Hondt favours large parties, Sainte-Laguë is neutral, modified 
Sainte-Laguë makes the first seat more difficult, which favours 
larger parties.

If we regard both methods as algorithms to find a suitable quota, 
d'Hondt rounds down, while Sainte-Laguë (Webster's) rounds off. Which 
digit the fraction starts with does not depend on the size of the 
party, so the method ought to be neutral.
http://www.aps.org/apsnews/0401/040117.html

The method that favours small parties is Adams' method, which rounds 
up. It can be used in organizations. A local association can send one 
delegate to the national conference for each beginning 25 members, 
for instance.

Olli Salmi