Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said in an interview with NBC News that he will encourage progressive voters to still back Democrats on the ticket in November even if moderates are victorious in the primaries.
My examples assume those things, but you’re free to switch them around as you like; it doesn’t change the underlying principle.
The key element of the spoiler effect is that a majority isn’t required. If you have 100 candidates and 100 voters, someone can win with only 2 out of 100 votes.
I am guessing that you very strongly do not want this to be true, but unfortunately that doesn’t make it so.
The good news, assuming you’re an American, is that the states dictate how voting works. Some states, like Maine, have moved away from plurality voting for some elections. In those states there is no harm in voting third party, as long as your vote finalizes on the major party you most align with. If your state still uses plurality voting, now you know exactly what to push for to get more representative voting in your state.
Yes, but that’s magical thinking. The spoiler effect affects voting behavior. You aren’t going to get 33% of voters to do that. Even if that did miraculously happen, the “blue” voter is faced with the spoiler effect in the subsequent elections; the point is that voters generally understand that splitting the vote is counter-productive.
This is not up for debate, it’s a well defined phenomenon.
If you want more than two parties, push to move from plurality voting.
My examples assume those things, but you’re free to switch them around as you like; it doesn’t change the underlying principle.
The key element of the spoiler effect is that a majority isn’t required. If you have 100 candidates and 100 voters, someone can win with only 2 out of 100 votes.
I am guessing that you very strongly do not want this to be true, but unfortunately that doesn’t make it so.
The good news, assuming you’re an American, is that the states dictate how voting works. Some states, like Maine, have moved away from plurality voting for some elections. In those states there is no harm in voting third party, as long as your vote finalizes on the major party you most align with. If your state still uses plurality voting, now you know exactly what to push for to get more representative voting in your state.
33% people vote blue, 33% people vote red , 34% people vote third party. Third party wins.
Yes, but that’s magical thinking. The spoiler effect affects voting behavior. You aren’t going to get 33% of voters to do that. Even if that did miraculously happen, the “blue” voter is faced with the spoiler effect in the subsequent elections; the point is that voters generally understand that splitting the vote is counter-productive.
This is not up for debate, it’s a well defined phenomenon.
If you want more than two parties, push to move from plurality voting.