[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote in part- Obviously it was Demorep's low tech proxy PR postings that sparked these ideas, though the variants described there had no application to single winner elections. --- D- Always glad to stimulate some new stuff.
The single winner executive/ judicial case is an end case of the general case of electing N candidates to ANY legislative, executive or judicial office. That is, ALL the combinations of -- N test/final winners versus each test loser (with the other choices deemed losers). I have suggested many times that an executive or judicial winner should be getting a majority vote of the voters. One variant for the simple proxy case for a single office might be just for the candidates for such office to go into a public room (i.e. no smoke filled back room in secret) and vote until a majority winner shows up (if there is no immediate majority winner due to the choice of the voters). Each candidate would have a voting power equal to the votes that he/she received from the voters. Because of Condorcet concerns with single winner offices simple proxy p.r. type lists (vote transfers from low losers) should NOT be used (unless of course, such lists use Condorcet math). Question -- deprive the candidates of bread and water until they get a majority winner (as was done in ancient times for jurors in jury trials until a verdict was produced) ??? This brings up again whether or not only number votes (1, 2, etc.) should be used. I would suggest that a 2nd choice vote is not necessary to be counted for most folks if a 1st choice vote determines a result --- with a like manner for 3rd (versus 1st plus 2nd votes), etc. If anything, having number votes (with or without Condorcet math) for high executive offices (President, State governors, city mayors) will obviously put some major pressure to have more accurate p.r. methods for legislative body elections (with such things as number votes or 100 to 0 scale votes). As usual, I suggest *short* terms to reduce the odds of electing long term disaster candidates -- especially U.S.A. Presidents. How many folks get really tired of the actions (or inactions) of a new U.S.A. President or a Congress even after 1 year ??? Folks should be noting that even the Afghanistan folks have a *very rough* proxy system with the leaders of the various tribes/ gangs meeting together.
