One of the most critical priority for any democracy is to improve its electoral system and start using a much better voting method.
Introduction: A Project's Commitment to Electoral Reform
At the Pilgrimage for Democracy and Social Justice, our mission is to contribute to world democracy and social justice.
A cornerstone of this goal is a commitment to identifying and promoting effective voting methods.
After extensive research, thoughtful deliberation, and careful consideration of real-world practicalities,
we've concluded that Informed Score Voting, with its specific design choices, offers the most promising path forward
for creating a more informed, engaged, and truly representative electorate.
This article outlines the reasons behind our enthusiastic endorsement of Informed Score Voting,
while also discussing other viable options and explaining our specific reservations regarding certain alternative approaches.
Our Recommended Trio: A Spectrum of Improvement
We confidently endorse three distinct voting methods as representing significant and valuable improvements
over traditional, often flawed, single-choice systems:
- Approval Voting: Simplicity as a Gateway to Progress.
Approval Voting stands out for its elegance and ease of implementation.
Voters can approve of as many candidates as they deem acceptable, and the candidate garnering the most approvals wins.
This method is particularly well-suited for communities initially hesitant to embrace more complex systems.
It provides a readily accessible, easily understood means to mitigate the distorting "spoiler effect" that plagues plurality voting
and allows for greater voter satisfaction.
It represents a vital, pragmatic first step, a stepping stone towards the more expressive systems
that can truly unlock the power of the electorate.
It's straightforward, empowering, and a proven improvement.
- Score Voting: Allowing for Nuance and Intensity.
Score Voting builds upon the foundation of Approval Voting, taking it a step further
by allowing voters to express the intensity of their preferences.
Rather than a simple "yes" or "no" approval, voters assign a numerical score to each candidate,
providing a richer, more nuanced reflection of their opinions.
This empowers voters to differentiate between candidates they simply find acceptable and those they strongly support,
creating a more accurate representation of their true desires.
- Informed Score Voting: The Apex of Electoral Innovation.
Building upon the inherent strengths of Score Voting, Informed Score Voting incorporates the revolutionary and uniquely powerful "I Don't Know" option.
This seemingly simple addition addresses a profound and often overlooked challenge: the reality of the uninformed voter.
The "I Don't Know" option promotes candidate engagement, enables diverse choices, facilitates dynamic elections,
and holds candidates accountable in a way previously unimaginable.
In Informed Score Voting, the goal shifts from electing the "least bad option"
to the more ambitious task of choosing the candidate who truly inspires and represents the best path forward.
Why Informed Score Voting Reigns Supreme: A Holistic Look at Its Advantages
Informed Score Voting distinguishes itself as our preferred method due to its unique ability to:
- Transcend the Limitations of the Duverger Syndrome:
Informed Score Voting transcends the inherent limitations of entrenched, binary political systems.
It empowers voters to look beyond the limitations imposed by a two-party structure,
offering a way to support viable third-party candidates and break the cycle of strategic voting driven by fear of "wasting" one's vote.
It reduces pressure for strategic voting and fosters greater consideration for new parties and movements.
- Unleash the Power of the Informed Electorate:
ISV voters get to express their feelings in tallies and numbers.
It offers a way to make politicians and candidates more accountable for their words and actions.
- Enable an Unprecedented Level of Choice:
No more settling for the "lesser of two evils."
Informed Score Voting allows voters to express support for multiple candidates and to differentiate
between those they find simply acceptable and those they passionately support.
It's about giving voters the power to advocate for the best possible candidate, not just the least objectionable one.
- Facilitate a More Inclusive Political Landscape:
Informed Score Voting makes it feasible to have a larger, more diverse field of candidates.
With the "I Don't Know" filter acting as a shield against the overwhelming effect of information overload,
new voices and perspectives can enter the political arena without being immediately drowned out by the established power structures.
- Create a More Dynamic and Engaging Election Cycle:
Instead of being passive observers, voters can actively participate in shaping the political landscape.
They can reward candidates who engage with the issues they care about,
while simultaneously holding accountable those who are out of touch or unresponsive.
- Prioritize Ethical Conduct and Accountability:
With its balanced scoring range, Informed Score Voting provides voters with a powerful tool for expressing both approval and disapproval.
This creates a strong incentive for candidates to conduct themselves ethically,
to be responsive to their constituents, and to uphold the highest standards of public service.
Recommended Scoring Range: The Sweet Spot for Expressiveness and Usability
For Informed Score Voting, we strongly recommend a scoring range of -5 to +5.
This range strikes the optimal balance between expressiveness, simplicity, and real-world practicality.
It offers enough granularity for voters to meaningfully differentiate between candidates,
while still remaining manageable and avoiding cognitive overload.
It's a system that is both powerful and user-friendly, ensuring that every voter can participate fully and confidently.
Why We Remain Wary of Ranked Voting Methods
Despite their popularity in some circles, we remain cautious and unconvinced by the merits of ranked voting methods,
including Ranked-Choice Voting (like IRV) and Condorcet methods.
• The Complexity Problem:
We find that ranked-choice voting, a popular alternative, can be unnecessarily complex and confusing for voters.
• Condorcet Methods:
While theoretically appealing, Condorcet methods suffer from disagreements on how to break circular chains of victory
and are difficult to count manually.
• Other Ranked Systems (IRV, etc.):
These systems do not perform as well as Condorcet methods and suffer from a host of additional issues, which we will detail in follow-up articles.
We shall also provide an article regarding all of IRV drawbacks.
Addressing Potential Challenges: Ballot Design, Education, and System Security
We acknowledge that the successful implementation of Informed Score Voting will require careful attention to ballot design,
effective voter education, and robust system security.
The main challenge lies in creating a ballot that is intuitive and easy to use,
while also ensuring that the tabulation process is transparent, verifiable, and resistant to manipulation.
A Path to More Perfect Elections: A Call to Action
While Informed Score Voting is not a guaranteed cure-all and requires ongoing commitment to address systemic issues,
we believe that it represents a profound and transformative step towards more perfect elections.
ISV presents a unique opportunity to empower voters, reduce the influence of uninformed opinions, promote ethical conduct,
and create a more representative and responsive democracy.
As such, we encourage all those who share our commitment to democratic reform to join us in exploring, advocating for,
and ultimately implementing Informed Score Voting in communities across the globe.
This is an invitation to be part of a movement, to join us on a pilgrimage towards a brighter, more just, and more democratic future.
