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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal>Something else came up while I was analyzing some voting methods. If you have a disproportionate number of political leaning in an election, some voting systems go awry.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>There may be a criterion for this, this is what I mean.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Let’s say that you have three total candidates. one is conservative, two are liberal, none are moderate. If the majority of the electorate is conservative, then it may make sense that a conservative gets chosen. However, in some systems – say one in which each voter gets one positive vote and one negative vote to cast – having more candidates of a particular “wing” can hurt you. Continuing this example, if we run Gore/Nader/Bush, both Gore and Nader supporters give their negative votes to Bush, casting their positive votes for their own candidate.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>If Gore supporters are 36%, and they vote Gore +1, Nader 0, Bush -1; and Nader supporters are 10%, and they vote Gore:0, Nader +1, Bush -1; and Bush supporters are the remaining 54% and they vote Gore -1, Nader 0, Bush +1…<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Nader wins. Even though 54% of the people voted for Bush. Even though only 10% voted for Nader.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Is this a thing? Kind of the opposite of the spoiler effect – that having many like-minded candidates actually increases the chance that one of them might win, even if their opposition is more numerous?<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>Does this only happen with negative votes? Or can it happen with other methods?<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D;mso-ligatures:standard'>-Benn Grant<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D;mso-ligatures:standard'>eFix Computer Consulting<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D;mso-ligatures:standard'><a href="mailto:benn@4efix.com"><span style='color:#0563C1'>benn@4efix.com</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D;mso-ligatures:standard'>603.283.6601<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>