The Alternative Vote Explained

Summary

The video explains the differences between two voting systems: First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) and Alternative Vote (AV). Queen Lion's kingdom suffers from two-party dominance and the spoiler effect under FPTP. Wallaby introduces AV as a solution, where voters rank candidates instead of choosing just one. The video follows Red Squirrel through both systems, showing how AV eliminates strategic voting and the spoiler effect by redistributing votes from eliminated candidates until a majority winner is determined. Queen Lion adopts AV, making elections more representative and fairer.

Takeaways

• 🦁 Queen Lion introduced elections for king using the First Past the Post (FPTP) system, but it quickly led to a two-party system, limiting voter choice.
• 🐿️ Red Squirrel, a voter, prefers Turtle but ends up voting for Gorilla out of fear of Leopard, demonstrating strategic voting under FPTP.
• 🐢 The FPTP system forces voters to choose strategically, often voting for candidates they don’t fully support to prevent their least favorite from winning.
• 🦘 Wallaby introduces the Alternative Vote (AV) system, where voters can rank candidates by preference, eliminating the need for strategic voting.
• 📊 In AV, if a voter's top choice is eliminated, their vote is transferred to their next choice, ensuring broader representation.
• 🐦 After Turtle is eliminated, Red Squirrel's vote goes to Owl, showing how AV transfers votes based on preferences.
• 🔄 AV simulates multiple rounds of runoffs, eliminating the least popular candidates until one wins a majority or becomes the only one left.
• 🐯 AV prevents the spoiler effect seen in FPTP, where a third-party candidate can cause a less popular candidate to win.
• 🦉 In the end, Owl wins the election with a majority in AV, highlighting that AV tends to elect candidates more broadly supported by the voters.
• ⚖️ Both AV and FPTP have flaws, such as susceptibility to gerrymandering and not guaranteeing proportional outcomes, but AV eliminates the spoiler effect.

Q & A

What is the main problem with the first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting system mentioned in the script?

The main problem with the FPTP system is the 'spoiler effect,' where voters are forced to vote strategically to prevent a less preferred candidate from winning, rather than voting for their actual favorite candidate.

How does the 'spoiler effect' influence voting in a first-past-the-post system?

The spoiler effect forces voters to cast their vote for a candidate they believe has a better chance of winning, instead of their favorite candidate, to prevent a less desirable candidate from winning.

What alternative voting system does Wallaby propose to fix the problem in Queen Lion's kingdom?

Wallaby proposes the Alternative Vote (AV), also known as Instant Runoff Voting, as a solution to the problems caused by the first-past-the-post system.

What is the main difference between first-past-the-post (FPTP) and the Alternative Vote (AV) system?

In FPTP, voters pick only one candidate, while in the AV system, voters rank candidates in order of preference, allowing for multiple rounds of vote redistribution until a candidate wins by majority.

How does vote redistribution work in the Alternative Vote system?

In AV, if no candidate wins a majority, the least popular candidate is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed to the voters' second choices. This process continues until a candidate wins a majority.

What is 'strategic voting,' and why is it necessary in a first-past-the-post system?

Strategic voting occurs when voters choose a candidate they believe has a better chance of winning, rather than their actual favorite. It's necessary in FPTP to prevent the least preferred candidate from winning.

What advantage does the Alternative Vote system have over first-past-the-post in terms of the spoiler effect?

The Alternative Vote system eliminates the spoiler effect by allowing voters to rank candidates in order of preference. This ensures that votes are transferred to second choices, preventing the election of a less preferred candidate.

Why does the Alternative Vote system make it easier for smaller parties to grow compared to first-past-the-post?

AV allows voters to support smaller parties without fear of wasting their vote or helping elect a candidate they dislike. This encourages the growth of smaller parties by giving them a chance to compete.

What is one criticism of both first-past-the-post and Alternative Vote systems mentioned in the script?

Both systems are susceptible to gerrymandering, are not proportional, and cannot guarantee the election of a Condorcet winner (a candidate who would win against every other candidate in a head-to-head comparison).

Why do the two big parties in Queen Lion's kingdom have to campaign harder under the Alternative Vote system?

Under AV, the two big parties cannot be complacent because they need to appeal to voters across multiple preferences to win, as they might rely on being the second or third choice of voters whose first-choice candidates are eliminated.