How e dey work, well well
Dem share di voters into districts, each one with number of electors. For Placet, you fit set dat sharing and weighting as you like.
Each district run im own count — di local method na your choice — and give im electors to di local winner, either as block or proportionally.
Di total electors pick di winner. Dat total no dey depend on how many votes, but on how dem SPREAD for map: na di whole difference.
Example wey get figures
Three districts, 100 voters, 10 electors each.
| District | A | B | Electors |
|---|---|---|---|
| North | 18 | 15 | 10 for A |
| Centre | 17 | 16 | 10 for A |
| South | 4 | 30 | 10 for B |
- A win North and Centre by small margin: 20 electors.
- B scatter di South: 10 electors.
- For total votes: A 39, B 61. B lead by 22 votes and still lose di election.
B extra votes for di South just waste. Dis thing — say to gather your support for one place no dey efficient — na di centre of every criticism of indirect voting, and of gerrymandering.
Where e come from
Di American electoral college come from di constitutional compromise of 1787: di framers no want election by Congress, and dem no want direct popular vote wey dem see as risky. Each state collect electors equal to im representation for Congress.
Di « winner-take-all » rule for state level no dey inside di Constitution: na di states demselves adopt am small small, to maximise dia weight. Maine and Nebraska still dey do am differently.
For France, dem dey elect di Senate indirectly with about 162,000 grands électeurs, mostly delegates of municipal councils — na why rural communes dey over-represented for structure.
Where dem dey use am
- US presidential election.
- Election of di French Senate by grands électeurs.
- Federations, confederations and company groups wey dey vote by entity.
- Any organisation where di parts must count as parts, no be by headcount alone.
Limits and wahala
- E balance di territories
- Result wey clear and organized
- E reduce big fraud
- Di one wey win popular vote fit still lose
- Vote dey waste for stronghold
- E dey depend on di boundaries
Questions wey people dey ask
How person go lose with plenty votes?
By winning di wrong districts. Votes wey pass di local winning margin no dey do anything: e better make you win three districts by one vote pass to scatter one by thousand.
Wetin e dey use for outside politics?
To make entities count instead of individuals: subsidiaries of one group, sections of federation, branches of association. Each one dey talk with one voice, no matter im size.
Dem fit share electors another way apart from block?
Yes. Placet fit share each district electors proportionally, wey dey cut di distortion well — na di choice of Maine and Nebraska.