May 3rd 2011… 2 days till the AV referendum. Yes it’s time for the polls to open once more and for you to turn off the TV and vote.
No matter what your side on the AV debate it is still worth voting for or against.
What is AV?
AV or alternative vote is different to the current voting system FPTP or FPP (First Past The Post).
Instead of voting for 1 candidate – which is present with FPTP – you mark down as many candidates that you see fit and rank them in order of preference.
So you could rank them:
Candidate A = 1
Candidate B = 3
Candidate C = 2
And so on…
Now this is were it gets a little complicated:
If Candidate A gets 40 votes
Candidate C gets 20 votes
Candidate B gets 25 votes
Candidate D gets 15 votes
The Candidate with the least votes is knocked out in this case Candidate D the votes of the eliminated candidate are redistributed to the other candidates.
This goes on until a Candidate gets 50 votes (to simplify instead of %) or there are no more Candidates left
So:
Candidate A gets 45 votes
Candidate B gets 30 votes
Candidate C gets 25 votes
Candidate C is eliminated and the votes are redistributed.
So:
Candidate A gets about 57 votes
Candidate A’s votes are over 50 votes and Candidate A wins.
Now that isn’t that complicated. I find it a pity that Prime Minister David Cameron is claiming that the public cannot fathom the concept of AV.
He brands the Alternative vote as ‘too complicated’, ‘unfair’ and ‘expensive’ throwing up scenarios and saying they are too complex. I think an Eton college educated Oxford first class honors degree Tory can work out a simple concept that even I a 14 year old can understand.
What AV is doing to the Coalition Government
The divide between Nick Clegg and David Cameron is showing evermore as May 5th creeps up on the wedded pair. They are arguing like a married couple who’s put the plates in the wrong dishwasher tray. May’be AV will be the beginning of the end of the coalition marriage.
Author: Caleb Law age: 14
