[EM] PR solutions

[Ken B]

On 6/8/2012 4:33 AM, Jameson Quinn wrote:
> All PR systems have complicated rules. But PAL representation 
> <http://wiki.electorama.com/wiki/PAL_representation> is actually very 
> simple for the voter; they need only cast a single vote, on a ballot 
> which explicitly lists only a manageable dozen or so candidates 
> (though it allows write-ins for a broader number).
= = = = =
[Ken B.]  Are you conflating the voting rules with the vote counting 
rules?  Voting in PR systems is simple for voters, whether it's "rank as 
many candidates as you want" (for STV) or "vote for the party you 
prefer" (List PR), for example.  It's the post-voting counting and 
"winner" rules that are more or less complicated.

What's also more or less complicated for voters is understanding how to 
make their choice(s).  If I read the description of PAL correctly, a 
voter has to tease out each candidate's ranked party preferences and 
compare them.  In turn, that seems to require studying and comparing 
multiple parties' platforms (which voters would do in a List PR system, 
too).  I'm not evaluating PAL, just saying that what voters have to do 
ahead of the election isn't necessarily a simple task.

   - Ken Bearman, Minneapolis MN USA