Re: question about the voting process

[Tobias Mueller <tobiasmue gnome org>]

Bonjour,

On 03.06.2010 21:50, Rosanna Yuen wrote:
> I was attempting to vote and got a bit confused by the last line of the
> instructions:
>         "Your vote will be counted for your first choice candidate as
>         long as he is still in the race, and when he is eliminated, your
>         vote will transfer to the next preference candidate still in the
>         race."
>         
> Does that mean if my number one choice is elected, then the rest of my
> preferences (numbers two through eleven) are ignored?  
Yes.
But ignored is a very pessimistic view. I'd put that way: Your vote is
counted "normally", but if your candidate does not get the necessary
amount of votes, your second preference gets your vote. Then the third,
and so on.

As you might have imagined, it's a bit more complex then that.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_transferable_vote writes:
> The single transferable vote (STV) is a preferential voting system in which votes are initially allocated 
> to an elector's most preferred candidate and then, after candidates have been either elected or eliminated, 
> any surplus or unused votes are transferred according to the voters' stated preferences. The system 
> minimizes "wasted" votes, provides proportional representation, and ensures that votes are explicitly cast 
> for individual candidates rather than party lists.

HTH,
  Tobi