Instruction and Activity: Who do you normally think of as the "winner"
of an election? How did that person win? By a simple majority (getting
the most votes)? By a super-majority (2/3 or 3/5 of the votes)? By a
plurality (winner getting more votes than anyone else, but not totaling
50%, yet still takes all)? Another calculation?
First, we need to decide what are the most important criteria of a
voting system. Then, we will try out different voting systems and see
if the goals are met.
Have students brainstorm what they think three or four main goals of
an election system should be:
- Decisive outcomes
- Fair Representation - a "real" choice
- Candidate competition
- High voter turnout
- Diverse candidates
- Good discussion of important issues
Several voting systems exist and are common throughout the United States.
Below please find a description of each. Go through the definitions
and examples.
The Types of Voting Systems:
1. Single-Member District Plurality Voting (Winner-Take-All)
Whoever gets the most votes, wins the seat. One vote per voter. Plurality
voting is what most individuals think of as an "election." It is a winner-takes-all
approach to election systems.
2. Cumulative Voting
This system is based on multi-member districts. Voters have as many
votes as there are seats. So, if there are 6 people running for 3 spots,
each voter gets 3 votes and can allocate them however they want among
the 6 people running. Candidates win by plurality. This system was used
to elect the Illinois state legislature from 1870 to 1980. In 1980,
the system was changed to Plurality Voting by a referendum of the people
of Illinois (a vote of everyone in Illinois). Cumulative voting gives
a greater voice to minority voters than they would have in a straight
plurality vote.
3. Proportional Representation
Systems Based on large, multi-member districts. Each party runs a
number of candidates equal to the number of seats in the district. Voters
indicate which party they prefer on the ballot and the parties then
get seats in proportion to their share of the total vote.
4. Choice Voting Based on multi-member districts.
Voters rank candidates in order of preference (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc).
The candidates with the most high-rankings take the seats.
Activity: Mock Classroom Election
Ask for 7 volunteers. They will be running for a mock election to choose
4 members to represent the class to a Student Class Council. Each of
the seven students should give a short speech on why they should be
elected to represent the classroom and why they can best serve the interests
of the students (give them a few minutes to prepare). The function of
the student representative is to voice any student concerns to the teacher
and principal and to lobby for changes in the classroom that the students
might want.
Once the candidates have given their speeches, it's time for the class
to vote. First, the class will vote on a plurality system (candidates
can vote too). Those 4 students getting the most votes would be elected.
If there is a tie between two or more candidates, there will need to
be a runoff round.
Next, try a cumulative voting system. Each student may cast four votes
among the candidates however they want. If they really like one candidate,
they can put all 4 votes on that person, etc.
Finally, try a choice voting system. Each students will rank the candidates
for who they think should be 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th. Those 4 candidates
with the most high rankings will win.
Variation:
Divide the students (candidate and non-candidate alike) into special
interest groups by handing out special interest group cards. One student
can have multiple special interest group cards. For example, minorities
can also be women who are small business owners. Other special interest
groups can include individuals with disabilities, tobacco companies,
environmentalists, developers, trial lawyers, etc. Try to proportion
out the special interest cards as you think they would be in real life
- 45% as women; 5% as individuals with disabilities, etc. Then, have
the students perform the different styles of voting giving the interest
groups a chance to discuss the candidates and their votes for up to
three minutes before each vote. See how the special interest group dynamic
affects the outcome of each vote.
Follow-up Questions
1. Which of the ways of voting did you prefer? Why?
2. Which voting method did you think was "least fair"?
3. List advantages and disadvantages of each method of voting (See
Handout).
4. What would happen if we had an "instant run-off" system? Example:
Three parties are the major players in an election. Two parties are
the primary players, but the third party is trying to gain popularity.
The two primary parties complain that the third party is a "spoiler."
If the third party candidate remains in the election, he pulls votes
from the other parties. What if you could vote for the third party candidate,
but if he does not garner a certain percentage of votes, your vote automatically
gets transferred to another candidate of your choosing? Would this system
eliminate the fear of a spoiler? What do third-party candidates add
to an election? Does the fear of someone spoiling an election prevent
people from voting for that person?
Voting Systems
Single-Member District Plurality Voting (Winner-Take-All) Whoever
gets the most votes, wins the seat. One vote per voter.
Example: County District One has one seat open for County Board. Jeff
and Linda are running for this seat.
| Candidate |
Votes Received |
Winner |
| Jeff |
150 |
X |
| Linda |
121 |
|
Cumulative Voting
This system is based on multi-member districts. Voters have as many
votes as there are seats. So, if there are 6 people running for 3 spots,
each voter gets 3 votes and can allocate them however they want among
the 6 people running. Candidates win by plurality.
Example: In County District One, three seats on the County Board are
available. Six individuals are running for these three seats. Everyone
in District One gets three votes and can divide those three votes between
any or all of the candidates. This system is based on multi-member districts.
Voters have as many votes as there are seats. So, if there are 6 people
running for 3 spots, each voter gets 3 votes and can allocate them however
they want among the 6 people running. Candidates win by plurality. Example:
In County District One, three seats on the County Board are available.
Six individuals are running for these three seats. Everyone in District
One gets three votes and can divide those three votes between any or
all of the candidates.
| Voter Candidate |
Jim |
Sally |
Sue |
Robert |
3 Winners |
| Candidate #1 |
1 vote |
|
|
|
1 votes |
| Candidate #2 |
|
|
|
|
0 votes |
| Candidate #3 |
1 vote |
2 votes |
1 votes |
|
4 votes |
| Candidate #4 |
|
1 vote |
2 votes |
|
3 votes |
| Candidate #5 |
1 vote |
|
|
|
1 votes |
| Candidate #6 |
|
|
|
3 votes |
3 votes |
Sally and Sue were able to coordinate and pool their votes to get their
candidates into office. Robert was able to pool his votes together to
vote his favorite candidate into office. Pooling votes can be helpful
to give minority groups a greater voice.
Proportional Representation Systems Based on large, multi-member districts.
Each party runs a number of candidates equal to the number of seats
in the district. Voters indicate which party they prefer on the ballot
and the parties then get seats in proportion to their share of the total
vote.
Example: County District One has 6 seats available on the ballot. Republicans,
Democrats, and Independents each run 6 candidates. Each voter votes
for a party, not for an individual. Representatives from each party
receive seats depending on the percentage of vote that they receive.
| Republican |
Democrat |
Independent |
| James |
Sally |
Ralph |
| George |
Lisa |
Tim |
| Linda |
Edward |
Carol |
| Robert |
Albert |
Theresa |
| Michael |
William |
Carl |
| Lee |
Vlad |
Betsie |
|
16.6% of vote
1 seat
|
33.3% of vote
2 seats
|
50% of vote
3 seats
|
Choice Voting Based on multi-member districts.
Voters rank candidates in order of preference (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc).
The candidates with the most high-rankings take the seats.
Example: In County District One, 3 seats are available and 5 candidates
are running. Each candidate is ranked 1-5. The top three candidates
get the available seats.
| Candidates |
Trina |
Dawnita |
Mark |
Avanelle |
Tom |
|
| Candidate #1 |
2 |
3 |
5 |
2 |
2 |
Winner #2 |
| Candidate #2 |
1 |
5 |
4 |
3 |
5 |
|
| Candidate #3 |
3 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
3 |
Winner #3 |
| Candidate #4 |
4 |
4 |
2 |
4 |
4 |
|
| Candidate #5 |
5 |
1 |
1 |
5 |
1 |
Winner #1 |
| VOTING SYSTEM |
ADVANTAGES |
DISADVANTAGES |
| Plurality/Winner-take-all |
Fairness: Highest vote getter wins
Best for 2 candidate races.
Easy to build coalitions
|
Losing candidates win nothing, even if they get 49%
of the vote.
In a 3 or more person race, over 50% may actually oppose the
winner
Not as many minority candidates can win
|
| Cumulative Voting |
May increase minority representation because minority voters
can stack their votes in favor of one candidate
Voters have more choices
Pretty easy to understand
More competition possible and higher voter turnout
|
Splitting votes not always best for representation. Splitting
votes may cause candidates to lose, concentrating votes may mean
losing a useful vote for another
Harder to build coalitions
|
| Choice/Preference |
Majorities and minorities win in proportion to their strength·
Easy to administer
More candidates may run
|
Harder to count the votes
Like-minded candidates are competing against each other - primary
and general election in one
|
| Proportional Representation |
Legislature "mirrors" the preference of the population
"will of the majority" better represented
|
Can lead to legislative gridlock.
Small parties may have too much power in the coalition
|
Source: Center for Voting and Democracy, http://www.fairvote.com
©Copyright 2003 Citizen Advocacy Center. All rights reserved. No part
of this lesson plan may be reproduced in any form or by any means without
the prior, written permission of the Citizen Advocacy Center.
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