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Electoral systems

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Electoral systemsRepresentationInstitutions

Electoral systems, representation & comparative inference

After the Count

Votes in. Power out. Which rule would you defend?

Investigate real elections in the UK, Israel, Liberia and New Zealand. Follow how votes become seats or one president, test rule comparisons and defend a consequence you value and a cost you accept.

How it runsSolo simulation
Time to planAbout 75 min or two sessions · provisional teaching plan
What you produceFour case briefs and a comparative evidence notebook
Just exploring Written notes optionalStart for class Complete the required responses

The same political choices in both routes. You can switch inside without starting over. For class asks you to complete any missing required responses. Save a report in either route; your instructor decides what to accept.

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After the Count. Created by Yoav Duman. Colored ballots pass through sculptural civic gateways toward parliamentary seats.
Electoral systems

What you can explore

  • Explain how local plurality, a list threshold, a majority runoff and MMP connect votes to representation or office.
  • Interpret numbers with the correct unit and denominator, and separate fixed-input calculations from behavioral forecasts.
  • Defend a design with evidence, a valued consequence, an accepted cost and reconsideration evidence.
  • Transfer a rule-based explanation to New Zealand while identifying a meaningful comparison limit.

YOUR ELECTION FIELD KIT

Keep the investigation.

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What the model leaves open

The records are historical; rule labs identify fixed inputs and uncomputed outcomes. The UK benchmark is fractional, Israel models eligibility only, Liberia compares separate elections, and the NZ lab does not recalculate all seats. Cover art is conceptual. Timing and learning effects need a human pilot.

AFTERWARD, THINK ABOUT

Where did a national vote total fail to explain a local seat result?

Teaching this activity Debrief, assessment & assignment draft

Bring it back to the room

  • Where did a national vote total fail to explain a local seat result?
  • Which comparison holds recorded inputs fixed, and which also changes the participating vote pool?
  • What would make your preferred rule better by one standard and worse by another?

What to assess

Assess mechanism, quantitative evidence, model limits, trade-off judgment and comparison/transfer with the manual’s 10-point rubric. The class route requires explanations. Completion and support exposure are records of activity, not automated grades.

Read the complete teaching guide →

Syllabus description, rubric & printable companion →

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Syllabus description & discussion prompts
Syllabus description
Investigate real elections in the UK, Israel, Liberia and New Zealand. Follow how votes become seats or one president, test rule comparisons and defend a consequence you value and a cost you accept. Students produce four case briefs and a comparative evidence notebook.
Questions for a discussion board or class debrief
  1. Where did a national vote total fail to explain a local seat result?
  2. Which comparison holds recorded inputs fixed, and which also changes the participating vote pool?
  3. What would make your preferred rule better by one standard and worse by another?
Open printable teaching companion →