The Alternative Vote Explained
Summary
TLDRThe 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.
Outlines
🦁 Queen Lion Introduces Elections but Faces Issues
Queen Lion of the Animal Kingdom is unhappy with how her elections for the position of king turned out. Initially, her realm flourished with a multi-party democracy, but it quickly devolved into a two-party system. This caused dissatisfaction among citizens who felt trapped due to the spoiler effect—a common issue in the first-past-the-post voting system. However, one of her subjects, Wallaby, suggests an alternative: the Alternative Vote system.
🐿️ Red Squirrel and the Voting Dilemma
On election day, Red Squirrel is faced with a difficult decision. Despite his support for Turtle, he is concerned that his vote may be wasted due to the two-party dominance of Gorilla and Leopard. With Gorilla being slightly more favorable to him than Leopard, Red Squirrel casts a strategic vote for Gorilla to avoid a Leopard victory. This scenario illustrates the strategic voting problem that occurs in the first-past-the-post system.
🗳️ Wallaby Explains the Alternative Vote
Wallaby introduces Red Squirrel to the Alternative Vote system, which allows voters to rank candidates by preference. Red Squirrel ranks Turtle as his first choice, Owl second, and Gorilla third, without choosing Leopard or Tiger. This method eliminates the need for strategic voting, as voters can freely rank their preferences.
📊 How Votes Are Counted in the Alternative Vote System
The counting process begins with Turtle being eliminated as the least popular candidate. Votes for Turtle are transferred to the voters' second choices, like Owl. As the process continues, Tiger is eliminated, with Leopard gaining Tiger’s votes. Finally, Gorilla is eliminated, and Owl wins by obtaining the majority of remaining votes. This process shows how the Alternative Vote system simulates multiple rounds of voting without the need for additional elections.
⚖️ Advantages of the Alternative Vote System
The Alternative Vote system ensures that a candidate with broader support from voters is elected. Though it shares certain flaws with the first-past-the-post system—like susceptibility to gerrymandering and an eventual trend toward two-party rule—Alternative Vote eliminates the spoiler effect. In a hypothetical scenario where a third-party candidate enters the race, AV prevents the fragmentation of votes that could lead to an unpopular candidate's victory.
👑 Queen Lion Adopts the Alternative Vote System
After examining the differences, Queen Lion declares the Alternative Vote system as the new standard for electing the king. This decision brings more satisfaction to the citizens, although the major political parties now face the challenge of needing to work harder for votes. The system encourages the growth of smaller parties and reduces voter fears of inadvertently supporting a disliked candidate.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡First-Past-The-Post (FPTP)
💡Spoiler Effect
💡Alternative Vote (AV)
💡Strategic Voting
💡Runoff
💡Majority
💡Two-Party System
💡Gerrymandering
💡Condorcet Winner
💡Proportional Representation
Highlights
Queen Lion introduces elections for the office of king using the First Past the Post voting system.
Despite starting with many parties, the realm devolves into a two-party system, a common issue with First Past the Post.
The spoiler effect traps voters, making them choose between two parties they may not like.
Wallaby proposes the Alternative Vote system as a solution to the spoiler effect problem.
In the Alternative Vote system, voters rank candidates in order of preference instead of selecting just one.
Red Squirrel, a voter, ranks Turtle as first choice, Owl second, and Gorilla third, showing how preferences are accounted for.
The Alternative Vote eliminates the least popular candidates in rounds until one candidate secures a majority.
The process simulates multiple elections where the least popular candidate is eliminated each round, ensuring more reflective results.
After Turtle and Tiger are eliminated, Owl wins the majority and becomes king, as Gorilla is also eliminated.
The Alternative Vote produces winners that are more broadly accepted by voters compared to First Past the Post.
Alternative Vote prevents the spoiler effect, allowing voters to support smaller parties without harming their top preferences.
Even with flaws such as susceptibility to gerrymandering, Alternative Vote is still mathematically superior to First Past the Post.
A scenario demonstrates that in First Past the Post, Gorilla could win with less voter support, while Alternative Vote ensures Leopard wins, as the majority prefers her.
Alternative Vote encourages the growth of smaller parties, giving voters more diverse choices.
Queen Lion decrees that Alternative Vote will replace First Past the Post in the kingdom, improving elections and forcing larger parties to campaign harder.
Transcripts
Queen Lion of the Animal Kingdom is displeased. She recently introduced elections for the
office of king using the first post the post voting system.
While her Realm started out as a healthy democracy with many parties running candidates for king,
it quickly devolved into two party rule, with the citizens not liking either one but trapped
within the system because of a problem called the spoiler effect.
However, one of Queen Lion’s subjects from a distant land, Wallaby, has a solution: The
Alternative Vote. What’s the difference?
To find out, lets follow one voter on election day, Red Squirrel, under both systems.
There are five candidates running for king, two members of the big parties Gorilla and
Leopard and three other candidates, Turtle, Owl and Tiger.
Under first-past-the-post Red Squirrel gets a ballot where he picks just one candidate.
Red Squirrel Really likes Turtle and even campaigned for him. However he knows that
his new neighbor, Grey Squirrel, is voting Gorilla.
And what, starts to wonder Red Squirrel, about all the other animals? Who are they going
to vote for? The debates on Animal News Network only had
the big parties, so Red Squirrel thinks it’s going to be a close race between Gorilla and
Leopard. While he’s indifferent toward Gorilla he
is deathly afraid of Leopard. Because he can only pick a single candidate,
he gives his one vote to Gorilla in hopes of preventing Leopard from becoming king.
This is strategic voting, and it’s a necessity under First Past the Post.
But now it’s time to look at the Alternative Vote, which wallaby explains to Red Squirrel.
Instead of picking one and only one candidate, he can rank them in order of his most favorite
to his least. He goes into the voting both and gets the
same ballot as before, but now puts Turtle as his first choice, Owl as his second and
Gorilla, third. He dislikes Leopard and Tiger equally so he
stops filling in his ballot and drops it in the box.
At this point, Red Squirrel doesn’t care exactly what happens, he has other things
on his mind and heads off. But you, dear citizen, want to know how the votes are counted so
here goes: Turtle, beloved though he is with some of
the citizenry, comes in last place with only 5% and he is eliminated from the race.
Because the voters ranked their candidates in order, we can know what would have happened
if Turtle didn’t run. Without Turtle, voters like Red Squirrel,
would have picked Owl instead, so their votes are transferred to her as though Turtle was
never in the race at all. This is why Alternative Vote is sometimes
called Instant Runoff Voting. It’s able to simulate a bunch of elections where the
least popular candidate is eliminated after each round without all the time and expense
it would take to run a bunch of campaigns, one after another.
The Alternative Vote method keeps eliminated the least popular candidate until someone
either wins a majority or is the only one left.
As no one has a majority yet, the next lowest candidate, Tiger, is eliminated. Tiger voters
listed leopard as their second choice, so she gets Tiger’s votes.
In the last round, Gorilla is eliminated. Gorilla voters listed Owl as their second
choice, so Owl gets those votes, wins a majority, so is crowed king.
The alternative vote is a better system because it produces winners that a larger number of
voters agree on. While the Alternative Vote does have flaws
it’s important to note that any problem AV has, first past the post shares.
They’re both susceptible to gerrymandering, they aren’t proportional systems, they can’t
guarantee a Condorcet winner (which math geeks hate but there isn’t time to explain here),
and over time they both trend toward two main parties.
That being said, Alternative Vote has a huge advantage that first past the post lacks and
makes it a mathematically superior method: no spoiler effect!
Imagine this election: the two big candidates are running, Gorilla and Leopard, and Leopard
looks set to win 55% to 45%. But then a third party candidate, Tiger, enters.
Tiger manages to convince 15% of the Leopard voters to back him. Now the results are:
Under first past the post, gorilla now wins even though a majority of the voters didn’t
want him. Under the Alternative Vote, because all Tiger
voters put Leopard as second choice, Leopard still wins because a majority of the citizens
of the animal kingdom would rather have her in charge than gorilla.
With AV citizens can help support and grow smaller parties that they agree without worrying
they’ll put someone they don’t like into office.
After examining the differences, Queen Lion decrees that the Alternative Vote is to be
the rule of the land for electing the king and everyone is happier. …well almost everyone.
The two big parties can’t be complacent and need to campaign harder for their votes.
This has been The Alternative Vote Explained by me C. G. P. Grey.
Thank you very much for watching.
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