Definite Majority Choice: Difference between revisions

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=== The Ballot ===

Voters rank their preferred candidates, from favorite to least preferred, and may optionally specify an Approval ~~cutoff~~.

Voters rank their preferred candidates, from favorite to least preferred, and may optionally specify an '''Approval Cutoff'''.

A [[Graded Ballot]] ballot implementation would infer the ordinal ranking from the 'grades' given to candidates, and the Approval Cutoff would be determined with a Lowest Passing Grade option. Voters could grade their choices from favorite (A+) to least preferred (ungraded), and give some or all of their graded choices a "passing grade" to signify approval.

A [[Graded Ballot]] ballot implementation would infer the ordinal ranking from the grades given to candidates, and the Approval Cutoff would be determined with a Lowest Passing Grade option. Voters could grade their choices from favorite (A+) to least preferred (ungraded), and give some or all of their graded choices a "passing grade" to signify approval.

<pre>

A B C D F + / -

X1 ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

X2 ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

X3 ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

Lowest ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

Passing

Grade

("C-" ~~Default~~)

("C" by default)

</pre>

A voter may give the same grade (rank) to more than one candidate. Ungraded candidates are graded (ranked) below all graded candidates.

Any candidate at the Lowest Passing Grade or higher is given one Approval vote. Unless changed, the Lowest Passing Grade is ~~C-minus~~ by ~~default~~.

Any candidate at the Lowest Passing Grade or higher is given one Approval vote. Unless explicitly changed, the Lowest Passing Grade is assumed to be C.

No Approval votes are given to ungraded candidates or candidates graded below the Lowest Passing Grade.

No Approval votes are given to ungraded candidates or candidates graded below the Lowest Passing Grade (i.e., C- and lower, by default).

Grades assigned to non-passing (disapproved) candidates help determine which of them will win if the voter's approved candidates do not win.

Adding a plus or minus to a candidate's grade is optional, but ~~allows~~ up to 15 ~~rankings~~.

Adding a plus or minus to a candidate's grade is optional, but enables 16 rank levels (including no rank given).

99% of the time, there should be no need to change the LPG -- with 9 grade levels from A+ to C-, there is plenty of room to express relative preferences.

99% of the time, there should be no need to change the LPG -- with 8 default approved grade levels from A+ to C, there is plenty of room to express relative preferences.

Setting the default LPG at C instead of C-minus allows an indecisive voter to be hesitant about granting approval by initially filling in a grade of C. If after reconsideration the voter decides to disapprove the candidate, the minus can then be checked.

But the LPG option allows a voter to move the cutoff higher or lower if sentiment changes before finalizing the ballot, without having to get a new ballot.

Having an LPG option may be useful as a last resort --- it allows a voter to move the cutoff higher or lower after entering grades if the voter makes a mistake. But it is not necessary to have an LPG option in a first public proposal.

==== Discussion ====