MATH 1030 - Voting Project 2016 Names of Group Members:

Emma Lalaian

Due: 2/26/21

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.

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? 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: 292

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.