[EM] NPV white paper - Condorcet flaw

[Markus Schulze]

Dear Warren,

you wrote (22 Jan 2007):

> Interesting idea, but
> (a) Schulze ignores approval (?) and definitely ignores range voting.
> I suppose these could be incorporated into his framework by
> interpreting these kinds of ballots as rank ballots (with equalities
> in the case of approval) then using Schulze-Condorcet ...

Well, as you say: Approval voting ballots and range voting ballots
can "be incorporated into his framework by interpreting these kinds
of ballots as rank ballots".

> ... but that would be telling whatever state had adopted approval
> or range that they are hereby overruled and their selected winner
> perhaps no longer is the winner.

On the other side, when those states that use range voting to calculate
the NPV winner interpret the individual ballots from those states that
use preferential ballots as range voting ballots, then this would be
telling whatever state had adopted a preferential election method "that
they are hereby overruled and their selected winner perhaps no longer
is the winner".

> (b) Schulze tells whatever states have adopted IRV, that
> their decision to adopt IRV is hereby overruled and the IRV
> winner shall no longer necessarily be the winner.

Nope! I wrote that __only where a state "refuses to publish the data
needed to calculate the pairwise matrix"__ the ballots from this state
should be interpreted as FPP ballots. Of course, the intention of
this regulation is to urge the states to publish the needed data and
not to "overrule their decision to adopt IRV".

> (c) I am not interested in the NPV bill in "promoting" a voting
> method.  That would kill the bill by leading to an infinite
> debate.  I am merely interested in the lesser goal of
> making NPV avoid destroying voting reform by allowing it to handle
> the main voting method contenders (including Schulze) in some
> reasonable manner.

I am not interested in the NPV bill in "promoting" a voting method,
either. I am merely interested in the lesser goal of making NPV avoid
destroying voting reform by allowing it to handle the main voting
method contenders (including Schulze) in some reasonable manner.

Markus Schulze