deborda.org

On 7.10.2009, the de Borda Institute hosted an open public meeting in Dublin, to see if the Dail could elect a power-sharing cabinet, with TDs choosing not only those who would serve in government, but also the particular department in which each successful Minister would serve.  The original invitation is here.

Participants were split into various groups, one each to represent FF, FG, Labour, Independents, GP and SF.  And each group was given a fixed number of ballot papers, in proportion to current party strengths in the Dail: 20, 14, 5, 2, 2 and 1 respectively, a total of 44 ballots.  The matrix vote is based on QBS and the MBC.  So it was to everyone's advantage to submit a full ballot - i.e., to cast all their preferences - and to do so on a cross-party basis.  Thus, in the simulation, groups planned strategies amongst themselves, and then negotiated deals with others. 

The outcome was as follows: FF 6, FG 5, Lab 2, Ind 0, GP 1, SF 1 - a proportional, all-party, power-sharing coalition cabinet, a GNU.  In other words, the matrix vote is indeed a robust voting procedure, and it all works without any resort to party labels.  A full report along with the results are here. 

In the wake of the expenses scandal, many are the calls for reform of the system of governance: inter alia, there are campaigns for changes to the electoral system and reform in the House, but few if any are suggesting reform of our decision-making processes, the 2,500-year-old majority vote, the most inaccurate measure of collective opionion ever invented.  Hence this open letter to the Minister

The peole elect the parliament, by PR; and the parliament elects the government, by PR.  Otherwise you get those crazy consequences of majoritarianism: the US Republicans hoping that Obama will fail; the UK Labour Party producing a budget of debt deisgned for only one year. 

In Ireland, too, the need for parliamentary collective responibility is obvious.  Hence this letter in The Irish Times, published on Wed. 22nd April.

Irish Political Studies has just published an interesting analysis of the Modified Borda Count (or preferendum) vote, which was used in the 2007 election by the Irish Green Party/Comhaontas Glas when they elected their Cathaoirleach/chairperson.  It was written by John Baker of Equality Studies in UCD, and here it is.

An article by Peter Emerson in The Guardian on 4th March 2009 exploring the use of consensus voting in a number of real life scenarios.