[EM] Most Tolerable or Better

[fsimmons at pcc.edu]

This is a three slot method. The two non-blank choices are "tolerable" and
"better." 

Elect the alternative that is marked tolerable or better on the greatest number
of ballots.

If there is a tie, then elect the tied alternative that is marked better on the
greatest number of ballots.

If a tie persists after this step, then break it by random ballot.

This method should be understood as a good faith attempt to minimize the number
of voters that have to live with an outcome that is intolerable for them, so
that other preference considerations are secondary.

Of course, a statistically confident, determined majority of 51% can still force
its will on the rest of the voters by bullet voting instead of admitting that
some other alternatives would be tolerable; this method is not a fool proof
solution of "tyranny of the majority."

You might consider this as a cross-walk version of Approval, because most of the
time there won't be a tie to be broken, just like most of the time pushing the
walk button is just for psychological benefit; it doesn't make the light change
any faster.

Beyond the psychological value the "tolerable" versus "better" distinction can
reveal valuable information after the election.

But there is also a more important (but subtle) benefit of having a separate tie
breaker level; from an instrumental point of view, your vote has only symbolic
value anyway when there is no chance of a tie.  

Voting power is defined as the probability that your vote will be pivotal in the
outcome.  It is pivotal precisely when it either makes or breaks a tie.  If a
tie is made or broken by one vote, then everybody who voted is glad that they
did (unless their vote broke the tie in an unintended direction as it could
under a non-monotonic method).  Otherwise, most people recognize that no
individual vote, including theirs, made any difference other than symbolic, for
example as a "mandate" for the winner or show of support for a loser.

The best case would be when there are two or more alternatives that are
tolerable (or better) to everybody, which is not out of the question in
situations where the voters are sufficiently like minded.  In that case the tie
breaker chooses from among these consensus candidates.