ACTIVITY 5

VOTING

I. Introduction

Voting is an important method in order to make a collective decisions may it be to

choose leaders such as leaders in a democratic country, school organization officers or the most
favorite brand of shoes. In order to make decisions, there are many ways may it be simple or
complex.

II. Objectives

At the end of this activity, you should be able to:

1. familiarize different voting methods such as plurality method, plurality with elimination with
or without rank, Borda count and pairwise comparison.

2. use plurality method, plurality with elimination with or without rank, Borda count and
pairwise comparison to solve voting problems.

III. Concepts

A. Plurality Method

In this method each voter votes for one candidate, and the candidate with the most votes
wins. The winning candidate does not have to have a majority (more than 50%) of the votes
(Aufmann et.al, 2013).

Example 1. Internet Usage. A journalist reviewing various internet service providers in the
Philippines surveyed 150 customers and asked each one to rank four service providers in order of
preference. The results are shown in the table below.

Rankings
Converge ICT Solutions 3 4 2 3 4
One SKY 1 1 4 4 3
PLDT 2 2 1 2 1
Globe Broadband 4 3 3 1 2
Number of votes: 15 30 40 25 40

Based on this table, which service provider is the favorite of these customers using plurality
voting system?

Solution:

We will construct a table showing the first-place votes for each service provider.

Service Provider First-Place Votes

Converge ICT 0
Solutions
One SKY 15+30=45
PLDT 40+40=80
Globe Broadband 25

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 Since PLDT receives the most first-place votes, using plurality voting system PLDT is
the favorite internet service provider.

B. Plurality with Elimination

This method is a variation of plurality method. If a candidate receives a majority of votes,

that candidate is the winner. Otherwise, eliminate first the fewest first-place votes. If two or more
of these alternatives have the same number of first-place votes, all are eliminated unless that
would eliminate all alternatives. In that case, a different method of voting must be used. Next,
adjusts the rankings of the remaining candidates. Repeat these process until a candidate receives
majority of the votes.

Example 2. Volleyball Uniform. A volleyball team must choose the colors for its uniforms. The
coach offered four different choices, and the players ranked them in order of preference, as
shown in the table below.

Uniform Colors Rankings

Maroon and white 1 3 3 2
Orange and gray 4 1 4 1
Green and white 3 4 2 4
Yellow and green 2 2 1 3
Number of votes: 4 2 5 4

Determine the colors of the uniform to be used using plurality with elimination.

Solution:

Determine first-place votes and eliminate the fewest first-place votes.

Uniform Colors Rankings

Maroon and white 1 3 3 2
Orange and gray 4 1 4 1
Green and white 3 4 2 4
Yellow and green 2 2 1 3
Number of votes: 4 2 5 4

Uniform Colors First-Place Votes

Maroon and white 4
Orange and Gray 2+4=6
Green and white 0
Yellow and green 5

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Eliminate green and white, then adjust the ranks of the remaining candidates.

Uniform Colors Rankings

Maroon and white 1 3 2 2
Orange and gray 3 1 3 1
Yellow and green 2 2 1 3
Number of votes: 4 2 5 4

Again, determine the first-place votes

Uniform Colors First-Place Votes

Maroon and white 4
Orange and Gray 2+4=6
Yellow and green 5

Eliminate maroon and white and the new adjusted preference uniform colors is shown below

Uniform Colors Rankings

Orange and gray 2 1 2 1
Yellow and green 1 2 1 2
Number of votes: 4 2 5 4

Uniform Colors First-Place Votes

Orange and Gray 2+ 4=6
Yellow and green 4 +5=9

The preceding table shows that, orange and gray has 6 first-place votes while
yellow and green has 9 first-place (majority of the votes). Therefore, yellow and green is the
most preferred colors for the volleyball uniform.

C. The Borda Count Method of Voting

This method was proposed by Jean C. Borda in 1770. Borda proposed that voters rank
their choices by giving each choice a certain number of points.

If there are n candidates or issues in an election, each voter ranks the candidates or issues
by giving n points to the voter’s first choice, n-1 points to the voter’s second choice, and so on,
with the voter’s least favorite choice receiving 1 point. The candidate or issue that receives the
most total points is the winner (Aufmann et.al, 2013).

Example 3. From Example 1, use the Borda count method of voting to determine which among
the four internet service provider is the favorite of these customers.

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 Rankings
Converge ICT Solutions 3 4 2 3 4
One SKY 1 1 4 4 3
PLDT 2 2 1 2 1
Globe Broadband 4 3 3 1 2
Number of votes: 15 30 40 25 40

Solution:

Using the Borda count method, each first-place vote receives 4 points, each second-place
vote receives 3 points, each third-place vote receives 2 points, and each last-place vote receives 1
point.

Converge ICT Solutions:

15(2) + 30(1) + 40(3) + 25(2) + 40(1) = 270

One SKY:

15(4) + 30(4) + 40(1) + 25(1) + 40(2) = 325

PLDT:

15(3) + 30(3) + 40(4) + 25(3) + 40(4) = 530

Globe Broadband:

15(1) + 30(2) + 40(2) + 25(4) + 40(3) = 375

Thus, using the Borda count method of voting, PLDT is the favorite internet service
provider of the customers.

D. Pairwise Comparison Voting Method

The pairwise comparison method of voting is sometimes referred to as the “head-to-

head” method. In this method, each candidate is compared one-on-one with each of the other
candidates. A candidate receives 1 point for a win, 0.5 points for a tie, and 0 points for a loss.
The candidate with the greatest number of points wins the election (Aufmann et.al, 2013).

Example 4: From Example 1, use the pairwise comparison voting method to determine which
among the four internet service provider is the favorite of these customers.

Rankings
Converge ICT Solutions 3 4 2 3 4
One SKY 1 1 4 4 3
PLDT 2 2 1 2 1
Globe Broadband 4 3 3 1 2
Number of votes: 15 30 40 25 40

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Solution:

We will create a table to keep track of each of the head-to-head comparisons. Note that a
matchup between, say, Converge ICT Solutions and One SKY is the same as the matchup
between One SKY and Converge ICT Solutions. Therefore, we will shade the duplicate cells and
the cells between the same candidates. This is shown in the table below:

Converge ICT Globe

Versus One SKY PLDT
Solutions Broadband
Converge ICT
Solutions
One SKY
PLDT
Globe
Broadband

To complete the table, we will place the name of the winner in the cell of each head-to-
head match. For instance, for the Converge ICT Solutions - One SKY matchup:

Converge ICT Solutions vs. One SKY

Converge ICT Solutions was favored over One SKY: 40 + 25 =65

One SKY was favored over Converge ICT Solutions: 15 + 30 + 40 = 85

The winner of this matchup is One SKY, so that name is placed in the Converge ICT
Solutions versus One SKY cell. Do this for each of the matchups.

Converge ICT Solutions vs. PLDT

Converge ICT Solutions was favored over PLDT: 0

PLDT was favored over Converge ICT Solutions: 15 + 30 + 40 + 25 + 40 = 150

Converge ICT Solutions vs. Globe Broadband

Converge ICT Solutions was favored over Globe Broadband: 15 + 40 = 55

Globe Broadband was favored over Converge ICT Solutions: 30 + 25 + 40 = 95

One SKY vs. PLDT

One SKY was favored over PLDT: 15 + 30 = 45

PLDT was favored over One SKY: 40 + 25 + 40 = 105

One SKY vs. Globe Broadband

One SKY was favored over Globe Broadband: 15 +30 = 45

Globe Broadband was favored over One SKY: 40 + 25 + 40 = 105

PLDT vs. Globe Broadband

PLDT was favored over Globe Broadband: 15 + 30 + 40 + 40 = 125

Globe Broadband was favored over PLDT: 25

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 Converge ICT Globe
Versus One SKY PLDT
Solutions Broadband
Converge ICT Globe
One SKY PLDT
Solutions Broadband
Globe
One SKY PLDT
Broadband
PLDT PLDT
Globe
Broadband

From the table above, One SKY has one win, PLDT has three wins, and Globe
Broadband has two wins. Using pairwise comparison, PLDT is the favorite internet service
provider of the customers.

IV. Practice Exercises

1. Juice Drink. Forty five people were asked to select their preferences among the three
different kinds of juice drink: Apple juice, Carrot juice, and Cucumber juice. The preference
schedule is shown in the table below.

Rankings
Apple juice 1 3 3
Carrot juice 2 2 1
Cucumber juice 3 1 2
Number of ballots 20 10 15

a. Using the plurality voting system, which juice is preferred by this group?

b. Using the Borda method of voting, which juice is preferred by this group? Which is second?
Which is third?

2. Election. In the recent election for local officials in Zamboanga City, Philippines, five
candidates are running for mayor. Interested persons were asked to rank the candidates in order
of preference. The results are given in the table below.

Rankings
M. Climaco 5 1 2 1 2
C. Lobregat 2 4 5 5 3
S. Ikbala 3 2 1 3 5
C. Miguel Sr. 4 3 4 4 1
D. Guevara 1 5 3 2 4
Number of votes: 16 9 14 10 11

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a. How many interested persons were asked?

b. Use the pairwise comparison method to determine the mayor of Zamboanga City.

c. Use the plurality with elimination method to determine the mayor to be chosen.

REFERENCES:

1. Aufmann, R. N., Lockwood, J.S., Nation, R. D., & Clegg, D. K. (2013). Mathematical
Excursions (Third Edition). Belmont CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning.

2. Baltazar, E., Ragasa, C., & Evangelista, J. (2018). Mathematics in the Modern World. C & E
Publishing Inc.,

3. http://college.cengage.com/mathematics/bello/topics/9e/assets/students/14se.pdf