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Single vote -plurality methods |
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Afirst-preference is a voter's most-preferred candidate.[1][2][3][4] In certain ranked systems such asfirst preference plurality,ranked-choice voting (RCV), and thesingle transferable vote, first preferences for a candidate are considered most important and prioritized heavily. This incentivizes pandering to thepolitical base or "core support" as a result of thecenter squeeze effect. Methods likeCondorcet voting,rated voting, and theBorda count do not exhibit such effects. Methods likeanti-plurality voting andCoombs' method have the opposite effect, being dominated by a voter's bottom rankings and so tending to elect the "least offensive" candidates.
First-preference votes are used bypsephologists and theprint andbroadcast media to broadly describe thestate of the parties at elections and theswing between elections.[4][5][6] The term is much-used in Australian politics, where ranked voting has been universal at federal, state, and local levels since the 1920s.
