FAQ: Voting in a BC-STV Election
How do I vote in a BC-STV election?
In a BC-STV election, voters use a ballot where they rank the
candidates (1, 2, 3, 4, etc.). Voters can rank as many or as few
candidates as they choose. Voters can cast all their preferences
for candidates of the same party, or assign their rankings to
candidates from a variety of parties and/or
independents. On the ballot, candidates are grouped by
party affiliation. For maximum fairness, the ballots will be
printed in more than one random format, so that no candidate or
party always gets the favoured top spot on the ballot
paper. Using a rotation of names on ballot papers is
called the "Robson Rotation". The ballot for BC-STV is called a
preferential ballot.
How is voting different in a BC-STV
election?
The voter would see two key changes from the current system:
-
First, instead of writing on the ballot a single
“X” for a single candidate, the voter would
be able to rank candidates (1, 2, 3 and so on) according to the
voter’s personal preferences.
-
Second, BC’s constituencies would no longer be
single-MLA electoral districts as now. There would be
larger ridings, each with more than one MLA. The
legislature would remain at 79 seats, though, so the ratio of MLAs
to population would be the same as now.
Does changing the voting system lead to more spoiled
ballots?
A change in voting system or ballot form does not have a large
impact on spoiled ballots. For example, when elections for the
parliament of Tasmania switched from First Past The Post (FPTP -
our current electoral system) to STV (the recommended system) the
rate of spoiled ballots was 1.2% in 1906 (under FPTP) and 2.9% in
1909 (under STV). Another example of this marginal
impact is when the House of Representatives in Australia went from
marking crosses on the ballot to listing numbers, the rate of
spoiled ballots changed 1.2%.
You may have heard that New Zealand had a problem with counting
STV votes in its Fall 2004 municipal elections. That was a problem
with its computers, not with the STV system. The Assembly has
designed BC-STV so the count can be done either by hand or by
computer.
Are votes “wasted” under
BC-STV?
STV virtually eliminates “wasted”
votes. For example, in a three seat riding, even if a
voter’s #1 preferred candidate is not elected, there is
a good chance her ballot will help her #2 and
#3 preferred candidates win a seat. About 16% of ballots
don’t contribute to electing a candidate.
|