[EM] The worst about each system; Approval Preferential

[Jameson Quinn]

2010/5/26 Kathy Dopp <kathy.dopp at gmail.com>

> Abd ul,
>
> I agree with virtually everything you say here. However, I would also
> consider that an excellent system for electing one winner would be
> "approval, every voter votes for up to two candidates, followed by a
> runoff of the top two vote getters".  It solves some of the problems
> of a simple runoff election, avoids the spoiler effect I think, and is
> very fair.  Although it does seem to always require a runoff election.
>
> Kathy
>
>
As Abd already said, you can avoid the runoff if only one candidate has a
majority. Abd's Bucklin proposal tricks many voters into extending more
approvals to decrease the chances of a runoff. My proposal, the one that
started this thread, is simpler to describe and count than Abd's, and it
makes extending second-rank approval (and thus typically avoiding a runoff)
rational for voters. I think that that will be more effective than tricks**.

My proposal again:

Voters rank each candidate as preferred, approved, or unapproved. If any
candidates have a majority ranking them at-least-approved, then the one of
those which is most preferred wins outright. If not, then the two candidates
which are most preferred against all others (ie, the two Condorcet winners
based on these simple ballots, or the two most-preferred in case of a
Condorcet tie) proceed to a runoff

To further explain how to figure who makes it into the runoff, if there is
one:
Calculate preferred+approval "base score" for each candidate. Now for every
candidate pair X vs Y, compare
X's base score - ballots which prefer X and approve Y
vs
Y's base score - ballots which prefer Y and approve X
If one candidate W beats all the rest, W is in the runoff. If V beats all
but W, V is the other one in the runoff. If not in either case, take the
candidate with the most preferences instead.
(This is just a simplified way of finding the Condorcet matrix).

This method is precinct-summable. One-round results can be done easily on
any equipment that exists, and/or by hand easily. The process for finding
who is in the runoff described above could also be done on even the most
antiquated equipment by running the ballots through once per viable
candidate (that is, those who's base score plus preferences is over the top
base score). Typically, this would not be more than three candidates.

JQ

**Insofar as voters agree with the statement "I trust society to get the
right answer, even if it's not the one I agree with", it's not a trick. Most
people don't seem to believe that, though.
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