How do I maximize my PR vote?

jdwex said:
Not your last preference though (if you vote all the way down). Your ballot paper could eventually end up end up in the pile of your second last preference, but not your last.
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Why not? That doesn't make sense to me.
 
ang1170 said:
Why not? That doesn't make sense to me.
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Try and think in what circumstance your last preference (if you vote all the way down), could be used. It can't, because if all seats have not yet been filled, there is still at least one other candidate, neither eliminated nor elected, with a higher preference on your ballot paper .
 
The only reason not to continue all the way is if you are absolutely and completely indifferent to the remaining candidates. Think of it this was, if your first let's say 6 choices weren't standing who would you vote for amongst the remaining let's call it 3.

Given you are at the margins of your views maybe you don't care, but on the other hand as you are considering people you obvioulsy have little time for there might be a difference. I hesitate to give a real world example for obvious reaosns.

If there are 12 candidates the 11th preference might help that person over the 12th. In that instance you could leave the last one blank.

These votes do get used so as I said you should only stop it you have no preference between those remaining and would have stayed at home if they were the only candidates

On the Bertie example he will of course have a surplus so no. 2s are distributed proportionally. There is a dispute about the methodology here as the actual physical transfer is usually done "off the top" so may not be representative but this is for reasons of effciency. It has been upheld in the courts I think.

Unless the surplus is double the quote (i.e eithne fitzgerald in 2002) a surplus vote is effectively worth proportinately less, however an elimination leads to the distribution of a whole actual vote.

As somebody said in the paper the system is complex to count but easy to use

[admitted I am a tallyperson]
 
jdwex said:
Try and think in what circumstance your last preference (if you vote all the way down), could be used. It can't, because if all seats have not yet been filled, there is still at least one other candidate, neither eliminated nor elected, with a higher preference on your ballot paper .
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If what you say is correct (and I'm not saying you're incorrect), what point is there in filling in the last preference if it can't be used?
 
Still doesn't make sense to me as to why you should vote 'all the way down' the paper. If I really don't want to help the election of anyone other than (e.g.) my chosen 5 candidates, then surely I should simply stop voting after number 5. Any other action may help to elect candidates that I really don't want to see elected.
 
But in that situation one of these undesireables will be elected, by voting all the way down you get to choose the best out of a bad bunch. If you don't care either way then there's no point.
 
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