[EM] Centrist vs. non-Centrists (was A distance based method)

[fsimmons at pcc.edu]

----- Original Message -----
From: Kristofer Munsterhjelm 
Date: Wednesday, July 13, 2011 2:12 pm
Subject: Re: [EM] Centrist vs. non-Centrists (was A distance based method)
To: fsimmons at pcc.edu
Cc: Jameson Quinn , election-methods at lists.electorama.com

> fsimmons at pcc.edu wrote:
> 
> > Of course if we have a multiwinner method, we don't want all 
> of the
> > winners concentrated in the center of the population. That's 
> why we
> > have Proportional Repsentation.
> > 
> > Also the purpose of stochastic single winner methods 
> ("lotteries") is
> > to spread the probability around to avoid the tyranny of the
> > majority.
> 
> I think you said that these are related, even: that PR methods 
> and 
> stochastic single-winner methods are similar, seeking 
> proportionality 
> (the former in seats, the latter in time).
> 

Precisely.  Andy Jennings was the one who hit on the key idea for constructing a lottery directly from a 
PR method; just do an N-winner PR method for large N, and treat the candidates like we treat parties in 
a party list method; keep the candidates in the running after they have already won a seat.  Then the 
number of seats won by the candidate divided by the total number of seats is the candidate's probability 
in the lottery.