vote_variation

Note that the descriptions below describe what the enumeration names stand for in the context of the VIP spec, rather than provide general definitions of the election terms that the names correspond to. For example, even though there are majority voting methods that are not “1-of-m” (e.g. ranked choice voting), we constrain “majority” to 1-of-m. We do this to eliminate any source of ambiguity when a single enumeration value needs to be assigned to a contest.

Tag Description
1-of-m A method where each voter can select up to one option.
approval `Approval voting`_, where each voter can select as many options as desired.
borda `Borda count`_, where each voter can rank the options, and the rankings are assigned point values.
cumulative `Cumulative voting`_, where each voter can distribute their vote to up to N options.
majority A 1-of-m method where the winner needs more than 50% of the vote to be elected.
n-of-m A method where each voter can select up to N options.
plurality A 1-of-m method where the option with the most votes is elected, regardless of whether the option has more than 50% of the vote.
proportional A `proportional representation`_ method (other than STV), which is any system that elects winners in proportion to the total vote.
range `Range voting`_, where each voter can select a score for each option.
rcv `Ranked choice voting`_ (RCV), where each voter can rank the options, and the ballots are counted in rounds. Also known as instant-runoff voting (IRV) and the single transferable vote (STV).
super-majority A 1-of-m method where the winner needs more than some predetermined fraction of the vote to be elected, where the fraction is more than 50% (e.g. three-fifths or two-thirds).
other Used when the vote variation type is not included in this enumeration.