This Condorcet/Ranked-Pairs video shows a sample ballot of somewhat different form than what is being proposed here — but the principle remains the same.
In Condorcet/Ranked-Pairs voting, for those (rare) cases where there is no Condorcet winner, the tallied pairs are sorted (“Ranked”) by strengths of preference, then considered from strongest to weakest, omitting weaker preferences – if, and only if, they conflict with stronger preferences – to determine the winning candidate.
- There is NO spoiler effect for Condorcet/Ranked-Pairs voting as there is for FPTP and (somewhat less) IRV: Candidates are NOT harmed by similarity to other candidates in the competition.
- It is easy for voters to understand and to do (though more involved for elections officials to count).
- Once counted, however, the results are readily persuasive, and easy for everyone to understand and accept.
- There is also no “process of elimination” of candidates (unlike Instant Runoff Voting, for example) — all voter preferences from all ballots are considered holistically in determining the final result (unlike Instant Runoff Voting and unlike first past the post, for example).
Candidates and parties must appeal-to and be accountable-to a broad base of voters.
Next: First-Past-the-Post (FPTP)
