MATH 1030 - Voting Project 2016 Names of Group Members:

Naomi Gonzalez-Garrow

Due: ePortfolio MATH 1030

The Iowa Caucuses

Part I: Research the Iowa Caucuses and explain how they work. Your response should be
a one-page (250-word) narrative. Be sure to include a brief history, how a caucus
differs from a typical primary election, and why the Iowa Caucuses play such an
important role in American presidential elections.
Both primary elections and caucuses are means of selecting a political party's delegates to send to their nation convention (Democratic Nation Convention,
DNS; Republican National Convention, RNC). However, a caucus is more of a gathering or a town hall to present a party's nominee and then people informally
vote. A primary is a more formal way of voting and choosing a party's presidential nominee to send to their national convention. Since 1972, Iowa has been the
first state in the U.S. to hold their caucus, which in turn, brings a lot of press and media to the state. It is a way to see which candidates are the most desirable to
the average middle-class American. In the tense political climate, wielding the power of being the first real political test has led to many future presidential
candidates vying for Iowans approval, which has been shown to actually reflect future political outcomes. For example, if a presidential candidate does well in
Iowa, they are like to become one of the final candidates in the primary election. The Iowa Caucus is so important because it marks the beginning of the
political presidential "season and also narrows down candidates to choose for presidency.
Part II: Imagine you live in Mason City, Iowa and attend a Republican caucus for Precinct
W1-P2 at the Highland Golf Course. The meeting organizers ask the voters to
select their preferences for four candidates. The following preference schedule
summarizes the results of the poll.

# Voters 19 6 36 39
1st B R C T
2nd R B R R
3rd C C B C
4th T T T B

B is Jeb Bush, C is Ted Cruz, R is Marco Rubio, and T is Donald Trump

Use this preference schedule to answer the following questions about various
voting methods. Vocabulary words in bold are defined in the Voting Theory section
in Math in Society .

i. How many people voted? 100

ii. Who wins by Plurality Method? T; Donald Trump

Part II: (Continued)

iii. Suppose we use Instant Runoff Voting. Remove the candidate with the
least 1st Choice votes and show the preference schedule.

# Voters 19 6 36 39
1st B B C T
2nd C C B C
3rd T T T B

iv. Remove the candidate with the least 1st Choice votes and show the
preference schedule.

# Voters 19 6 36 39
1st C C C T
2nd T T T C

v. Who wins by Instant Runoff Voting? C; Ted Cruz

vi. Calculate a Borda Count for each candidate.

B: 205 C: 272

R: 306 T: 217

vii. Who wins by Borda Count? R; Marco Rubio

viii. How many points does each candidate get using Copeland's Method?

B: 1 C: 2

R: 3 T: 0

ix. Who wins by Copeland's Method? R; Marco Rubio

x. Is there a Condorcet Candidate? Y or N

xi. If so, who is the Condorcet Candidate? R; Marco Rubio

Part III: Imagine that the members of your group are selected as the delegates from
Precinct W1-P2 and you must agree on one candidate to support at the Cerro
Gordo County Convention. Write a one-page (250-word) discussion explaining
who won the election. The discussion should include your interpretation of your
calculations in Part II and which fairness criteria helped you choose a winner.

There is no right answer (see Arrow's Impossibility Theorem). As a group it is your

job to make a decision and defend that decision in your discussion.

After looking though all of the data collected and seeing the results, I have chosen to support
Marco Rubio at the Cerro Gordo Country Convention. This decision was determined based on
the Condorcet Candidate fairness criteria. When put against all other opponents, Marco Rubio
(R) wins overall. I find that Marco Rubio winning the Borda Count and Copeland's Method
are the more fairer criteria rather than a majority situation.