THE INDEPENDENT VOTING SYSTEM

One man - one vote per candidate

The Independent Voting System is the only system of taking a vote that has all of the following desirable properties:

1. Every voter has exactly the same amount of power, regardless of his preference.
2. Voters are not split by multiple candidates with similar platforms.
3. Voters who do not like any of the candidates are not disenfranchised.
4. Voters who like more than one candidate are not disenfranchised.
5. The system does not have a bias for or against any candidate.
6. The number of candidates running does not matter.
7. A candidate cannot affect the outcome of the election by entering the race, unless he wins the election.
8. Because of this, no petition signatures are necessary to get on the ballot.
9. Because candidates can't hurt each other by running, no primary election is necessary.
10. No runoff election is necessary, unless a tie occurs or no candidate gets a positive score.
11. No recounts.
12. Negative campaigning will end, because voting for one candidate doesn't automatically vote against another.
13. There is no such thing as an overvote or an undervote.
14. Voters can always vote their consciences.
15. Voters do not have to abandon their favorite candidates to prevent their worst choices from being elected.
16. The system can also be used for fair at-large elections.
17. The system can also be used for fair referendum elections.
18. The system can be used in a fair form of electoral voting (see below).
19. The system can be used in a fair form of proportional representation voting (see below).
20. The system can have a way to eliminate nonlegislative offices built into it.
21. Independent Voting works equally well on any type of ballot: paper, machine, computer, or mark-sense.
22. Congress uses it for its internal votes.

The Plurality, or "Vote for only one", election system currently in use in most places has NONE of the desirable properties above.

Play with the various voting systems

HOW IT WORKS

THE REGULAR INDEPENDENT VOTING ELECTION

The Independent Voting System works in the following manner:

1. Ballot preliminaries:
   • Anyone who is legally eligible to hold the office can enter the race.
   • There shall be no primary election.
   • Any party with interest can add a referendum, or add a choice to an existing referendum.
   • The filing fee for a candidacy or referendum shall be less than a day's minimum wage.
   • The filing deadline shall be one month before the election.
2. The Ballot
   • Each candidate or referendum Choice has one ballot position.
   • Each ballot position has selectable entries for both YES and NO.
   • If a voter makes no selection in a ballot position, or selects both YES and NO (on a paper ballot or a two-button machine), an ABSTAIN vote is recorded.
   • There is absolutely NO interlocking between one ballot position and another.
   • No combination of voting selections is disallowed.
   • Since more than one candidate from each party can run, there will be no straight-party selection.
   • The voter is allowed to make exactly the choices he wants.
3. The tally:
   • Each candidate or referendum Choice is hereafter referred to as a "Choice".
   • Each Choice is scored independently with the following procedure:
     1. The YES votes for the Choice are counted.
     2. The NO votes for the Choice are counted.
     3. The number of NO votes is subtracted from the number of YES votes using integer arithmetic, producing the Score for the Choice. This means that if more NO votes than YES votes are counted, the Choice has a negative Score.
   • The Scores of the Choices are entered into the tally board.
   • All Choices with negative or zero Scores are removed from the election process at this point.
4. The results:
   • If one Choice has a unique highest positive Score, that Choice is elected.
   • If more than one Choice has the same highest Score, the runoff procedure below is used among only the Choices having that same high Score.
   • If no Choice had a positive Score:
     • If the race is for a legislative, executive, or judicial office, the runoff procedure is used among an entirely new slate of candidates.*
     • If the race is for an administrative office, and at least one candidate had fewer NO votes than twice his YES votes, the runoff procedure is used with an entirely new slate of candidates.*
     • If the election is for an administrative office, and every candidate had more NO votes than twice his YES votes, the office is abolished.
     • If the election is a referendum, no change is made to the current law.
   • If someone challenges the tally legally, the runoff procedure is held among all Choices with positive Scores (instead of doing a recount).
   • If proof of voter or official election fraud or a ballot printing or programming error is demonstrated, all tallies of all candidates in the affected races shall be kept secret, and a revote on just the affected races shall be taken one week after the election.
5. The runoff procedure (used only in case of a tie, a tally challenge, or no positive scores):
   • No Choice that received a negative or zero Score can be a Choice in any runoff.
   • The runoff election is exactly 2 weeks later.
   • If evidence of fraud is discovered, any party may post extra inspectors who look for fraud.
   • The same procedure for balloting, tallying, and evaluating the results is used, except:
     • In a legislative, executive, or judicial race, the runoff procedure is repeated every two weeks until someone wins the election.
     • An administrative office is abolished if no positive Scores occur in the runoff, regardless of whether any candidate had fewer NO votes than twice his YES votes.
     • No challenge may be filed on the results of a runoff unless proof of fraud is shown.

* = It is obvious that no majority wanted any of the current candidates.

Play with the various voting systems

SAMPLE BALLOT

The above ballot is mark-sense, but the system will work with most voting equipment. This includes paper ballots, lever machines, electronic machines, touch screen, and punch card. Notice that you can vote for or against more than one candidate, and that parties can run more than one candidate.

Independent voting is designed to choose, among all possible outcomes, the outcome that pleases the largest number of voters.

The Independent Voting System is well worth adopting. It will provide a better selection based on public opinion than any of the current systems do.

See the special procedures for at-large elections, electoral elections, proportional elections, and numeric elections farther down this page.

LINKS:

• Play with the various voting systems
• Unfair and Fair elections
• Comparing different election systems
• Criteria for Fair Elections
• Election Cheats and Biases
• Voting machine makers won't commit fraud
• Dimpled chad are not votes
• Stupid Government Tricks
• HOME

SPECIAL INDEPENDENT VOTING SYSTEM PROCEDURES:

SPECIAL PROCEDURE FOR AT-LARGE ELECTIONS

In at-large elections, usually used to select governing board members, the following procedure is used instead:

1. Use the Regular Independent Voting System election above.
2. If the office has n seats, indicate that on the ballot.
3. the n choices with the highest positive scores are elected.
4. If fewer than n choices have positive scores, use the regular runoff process above, but make sure that enough choices are on the ballot, and elect only enough choices to fill the remaining empty positions.

Consideration should be made for proportional representation instead of at-large representation. Proportional representation usually fits public opinion better.

SPECIAL PROCEDURE FOR ELECTORAL ELECTIONS

In electoral elections, usually used to select the executive of the government, the following procedure is used instead:

1. The election ballot is made and conducted in exactly the same way as in a Regular Independent Voting System election.
2. Sets of YES and NO counters for the votes for each Choice are made for:
   • Each precinct,
   • Each representative district for the level of government the electoral election is for
   • Each senatorial district for the level of government the electoral election is for
   • The Electoral Votes themselves

   Note that the votes counted in each representative and senatorial district are votes for the electoral office, not votes for the representative or senator. The districts are used to tell which tally the votes count for.

   All of these counters are set to zero at the start of the tally process.

3. When the YES and NO counts are taken for each precinct, they are taken in the same manner as the counts of the Regular Independent Voting System election. But no Scores are calculated yet. The counts are entered into the Precinct counters.
4. The YES and NO count results for each Choice in each precinct are added to the counters made for the legislative representative district serving that precinct.
5. The same precinct results are also added to each set of counters made for each senatorial district serving that precinct.
6. The tallies for each representative district shall now be scored. Find the Score for each Choice as is done for the Regular Independent Voting System election above. But do not eliminate Choices with negative or zero Scores at this time.
7. Turn the representative district Scores into Electoral Votes:
   • A YES Electoral Vote for the Choice if the Score is positive
   • A NO Electoral Vote for the Choice if the Score is negative
   • An ABSTAIN Electoral Vote for the Choice if the tally is zero
8. Sum the Electoral Votes so produced into the Electoral Vote counters.
9. The tallies for each senate district shall now be scored. Find the Scores for each senate district.
10. Find the Limit by counting the number of senators in the district.
11. The number of senate Electoral Votes allowed shall be the Limit.
12. For each Choice, find the Score Magnitude by finding the Absolute Value of the Score.
13. For each Choice, find the Quotient by dividing the Score Magnitude by 50, using integer division. Discard the remainder of that division.
14. For each Choice, find the Difference by subtracting the Quotient from the Limit.
15. For each Choice, turn the resulting Quotient into Electoral Votes:
    • If the Score is positive and the Quotient is greater than or equal to the Limit, a number of YES Electoral Votes equal to the Limit shall be entered into the counters for the Choice.
    • If the Score is positive and the Quotient is less than the Limit, a number of YES Electoral Votes equal to the Quotient shall be entered into the counters for the Choice. A number of ABSTAIN Electoral Votes equal to the Difference shall be entered into the counters for the Choice.
    • If the Score is negative and the Quotient is greater than or equal to the Limit, a number of NO Electoral Votes equal to the Limit shall be entered into the counters for the Choice.
    • If the Score is negative and the Quotient is less than the Limit, a number of NO Electoral Votes equal to the Quotient shall be entered into the counters for the Choice. A number of ABSTAIN Electoral Votes equal to the Difference shall be entered into the counters for the Choice.
    • If either the Score is zero or the Quotient is zero, A number of ABSTAIN Electoral Votes equal to the Limit shall be entered into the counters for the Choice.
16. The Electoral Votes for each candidate shall be scored just like regular votes in the Regular Independent Voting System election above.
17. The winner is now computed as in the Regular Independent Voting System election above, using the tallies from the Electoral Votes.
18. The runoff procedure is the same as in the Regular Independent Voting System election above, except that nobody may challenge a precinct tally unless it can affect the winner of the electoral tallies by itself.

SPECIAL PROCEDURE FOR PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION ELECTIONS

Proportional representation is based on allocating the number of representatives or votes in the governing body to be proportional to the number of votes each political party or Choice receives. The Independent Voting System is modified slightly to fill a proportionally represented governing body as follows:

1. The election ballot is made and conducted in exactly the same way as in a Regular Independent Voting System election.
2. The tallies shall now be scored. Find the Score for each Choice as is done for the Regular Independent Voting System election above. But do not eliminate Choices with negative or zero Scores in this process.
3. Instead, remove all Choices that received no YES votes.
4. Find the remaining Choice with the most negative score. Add this number to all of the Choices' scores to find their Partial Numbers.
5. Find the sum of all of the Partial Numbers.
6. Divide the sum of the Partial Numbers so found by the number of votes in the chamber to get the Reduction Ratio.
7. For each Choice, divide its Partial Number by the Reduction Ratio, giving the Selection Number for that Choice.
8. Round each Selection Number to the nearest integer, giving the Index Number. But if any Choice receives zero as an Index Number, replace it with a one.
9. Find the sum of the index numbers.
10. If the sum of the Index Numbers does not now equal the number of votes in the chamber, adjust the sum in the correct direction by changing the rounding of the Index Numbers of the Choices with Selection Numbers closest to the .5 rounding point. But again, such changes must not produce an Index Number of Zero.
11. Make a table as follows:

    In this example, the body has 6 seats and 104 votes.

    Demicans 39 Republicrats 30 Libertariats 26 Greeds 9 Squatcho 26 Stubbery 12 Pudloo 11 Greedo 9 Dunbury 13 Ritlo 8 Libraitiss 8 Reblicto 6 Triatsun 7 Publicus 4

    A. Give each Political Party one column. B. Arrange the Choices into the columns under their Political Parties, one per row. C. Put each Index Number with its Choice.

    D. Sum the Index numbers for each party. Put the sum next to the party name to be put with the Parties E. Sort each column's rows according to the Index numbers of the Choices, with the greater numbers at the top. F. Sort the columns according to the sums of the Index Numbers of the Parties, with the greater numbers on the left. Note: If several parties have the same sum of Index Numbers, Sort that subgroup of parties according to the highest candidate Index Number found within each Party.

12. Going across, row by row, from left to right, and from top down, count off the number of seats in the legislative body. Seat the Choices counted off. Skip any empty cells when counting, so each count has a Choice attached to it.
13. Divide the remaining Index Numbers into units, and distribute the units in each column equally among the seated candidates there:

    G. Count off, left to right, and going down by rows, the 6 seats in the body. H. Throw out the remaining candidates. I. Evenly distribute the remaining units in the column, distributing the ones that won't evenly divide by starting at the top.

    Demicans 39 Republicrats 30 Libertariats 26 Greeds 9 Squatcho 26 Stubbery 17 Pudloo 26 Greedo 9 Dunbury 13 Ritlo 13

14. The next part can be done instead of step I if it is desired that candidates of the same party have the same vote, instead of proportional votes:

    J. Evenly distribute all of the units in the column, distributing the ones that won't evenly divide by starting at the top.

    Demicans 39 Republicrats 30 Libertariats 26 Greeds 9 Squatcho 20 Stubbery 15 Pudloo 26 Greedo 9 Dunbury 19 Ritlo 15

15. If the number of Choices on the ballot is less than the number of seats, or the number of Choices receiving YES votes is less than the number of seats, the remaining seats are filled in a runoff election with none of the original Choices allowed to be on the ballot.
16. If the number of seats is less than the number of Parties (columns), each unseated Political Party shall choose which seated Choice or Choices to give all or parts of its Index Number units to.

    If there were 3 seats instead of 6:
    J. The unseated Political Party chose which seated Choice or Choices to give all or parts of its Index Number units to.	Demicans 48 Republicrats 30 Libertariats 26 Greeds 0 Squatcho 48 Stubbery 30 Pudloo 26 9 given to Squatcho

17. The final Index Number of each Choice becomes the number of votes the Choice has as the seated proportional representative.

SPECIAL PROCEDURE FOR ELECTIONS TO SET NUMERICAL VALUES

Numerical selection is based on finding the public's choice of a number, usually for salaries or tax rates. The Independent Voting System is modified slightly to find a number as follows:

1. If the value to be found is a real value, at least 10 Values, evenly spaced, are placed on the ballot in numerical order, with each Value being a Choice.
2. If the value to be found is an integer value, the values to be selected among are placed on the ballot in numerical order, with each Value being a Choice.
3. This system shall not be used to set speed limits or other values that should be set by sound engineering practice, not politics.
4. Before the election, if any person objects to a Value not being included on the ballot, and the Value is a legal one to be considered, the number and distribution of Values on the ballot shall be changed so that all the original Values, the added Value, and sufficiently more Values to make all of the Values equally spaced, are all on the ballot.
5. The election is conducted in exactly the same way as in a Regular Independent Voting System election. The voter votes Yes on all Values within the range he likes, No on all Values he will not accept, and abstains on the rest.
6. The tallies shall now be scored. Find the Score for each Choice as is done for the Regular Independent Voting System election above.
7. The winner is computed as in the Regular Independent Voting System election above.
8. If two real values next to each other tie as co-winners, the actual value shall be the average of the two values.
9. If a runoff election is indicated due to a lack of a positive Score, the list of numbers used in the runoff shall be found by finding the midpoints between adjacent numbers, and then adding zero to the list.
10. If the runoff fails to produce a winner, the result shall be as if the election never took place. Any tax or new salaried position shall cease to exist. Any existing salary shall continue at the same rate. And any proposed numerical limit placed on the public is repealed.

LINKS:

• Unfair and Fair elections
• Play with the various voting systems
• Comparing different election systems
• Criteria for Fair Elections
• Election Cheats and Biases
• Voting machine makers won't commit fraud
• Dimpled chad are not votes
• Stupid Government Tricks
• HOME