Example giving operation of Schedule 1
PREAMBLE
The purpose of this Act is to implement Articles 28 and 48 of the Constitution by providing a method for conducting elections and referenda. This Act replaces Provisional Measure 01/98 and all previous acts with contrary provisions.
CHAPTER I - POLITICAL PARTIES
Article 1. The organization and creation of political parties are the right of the Oranger citizen, and shall not be regulated by law, except as provided in Article 2 below.
Article 2. The Secretary-General shall have the power to suppress any political party or movement whose purpose is to advocate the overthrow of the Government of Orange by force, violence, or any means other than those provided by the Constitution.
CHAPTER II - ELIGIBILITY TO VOTE
Article 3. The right to vote may be exercised by all citizens older than 13 years.
CHAPTER III - CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS, GENERALLY
Article 4. The provisions of this Chapter apply to all national elections, and to all provincial elections, except where a provincial law provides otherwise.
Article 5. For the purpose of this Act, the phrase "the time set for elections" is defined as:
(I) The day following the dissolution of the Floresters, or
(II) Two weeks prior the expiration of the term of the Floresters, where the six-month term is about to be completed, or
(III) Two weeks prior to a date scheduled for a referendum or special election according to law.
Article 6. At the time set for elections, the Council of State shall elect one person to serve as the Returning Officer, who shall then be responsible for the conduct of the election. The Returning Officer cannot be a member of the Council of Floresters, nor a candidate in the election being organized, nor the sponsor of an issue being presented in referendum.
Article 7. Votes shall be cast by e-mail sent to the Orange National List. The Returning Officer may, at his discretion, provide a form for the ballot in the Orange government Web site for the convenience of electors.
CHAPTER IV - REFERENDA
Article 8. A referendum may be called by a majority vote of the Council of Floresters, or upon receipt by the General Secretary of a petition signed by twenty percent (or three persons, whichever is greater) of the citizens.
Article 9. If the election is a referendum, the Returning Officer shall set a voting period, beginning at 0001 Orange Time on a Friday, and ending at 2359 Orange Time on a Sunday, not less than seven days following his appointment.
Article 10. Each elector may cast one vote for each issue by giving in the e-mail message the number assigned for that issue (when more than one issue is on the ballot) and either "Yes" or "No".
Article 11. Following the end of the voting period, the Returning Officer shall publish a summary of the election results, stating the number of "Yes" votes on each issue, and the number of "No" votes on each issue.
CHAPTER V - ELECTIONS FOR THE COUNCIL OF FLORESTERS
Article 12. At the time set for election, the Secretary of Administration shall conduct a census of all known citizens of Orange. Citizens failing to respond to the census within eight days shall be ineligible to vote.
Only paragraph. The Secretary of Administration shall then declare, based on the number of census returns, the number of contested seats in the Council of Floresters. If the number of citizens responding to the census is less than 15, three Councillors are to be elected. If the number of citizens responding is at least 15 but less than 25, five Councillors are to be elected. If the number of citizens responding is at least 25 but less than 35, seven Councillors are to be elected. If the number of citizens responding is 35 or more, nine Councillors are to be elected.
Article 13. For seven days following the time set for election, candidates seeking election to the Council of Floresters shall notify the Returning Officer of their desire to be elected. At the end of this period, the Returning Officer shall publish a list of candidates seeking election. Votes for any person not on this list will not be counted.
Article 14. The Returning Officer shall set a voting period, beginning at 0001 Orange Time on a Friday, and ending at 2359 Orange Time on a Sunday, not less than seven days following the close of nominations provided in Article 12.
Only paragraph. In the event that the number of candidates is less than or equal to the number of seats to be filled, the Returning Officer shall declare the election concluded and all candidates elected. If, and only if, the number of candidates is greater than the number of seats to be filled, the election shall proceed as provided in Articles 14 and 15.
Article 15. Votes shall be cast as provided in Article 7. Each elector may cast as many votes as there are seats to be contested as set in Article 11, by placing a number next to the candidate they wish to vote for in order of preference, with "1" being the first preference, "2" being the second preference, and so on.
Article 16. Following the end of the voting period, the Returning Officer shall calculate the number of votes received by each candidate according to the method prescribed in Schedule 1, which is added to this Act and made a part hereof. The election results shall be published, displaying the calculations stated in Schedule 1, and election of the winning candidates declared.
CHAPTER VI - SINGLE-CANDIDATE ELECTIONS
Article 17. Elections for offices for which a single candidate is to be elected shall be conducted according to Chapter III of this Act, and as follows:
First paragraph. For seven days following the time set for election, candidates seeking election shall notify the Returning Officer of their desire to be elected. At the end of this period, the Returning Officer shall publish a list of candidates seeking election. Votes for any person not on this list will not be counted.
Second paragraph. In the event that only one candidate has notified the Returning Officer of his desire to be elected, the Returning Officer shall declare the election concluded and that candidate elected. If, and only if, the number of candidates is two or more, shall the election proceed as provided in the Third and Fourth Paragraphs of this Article.
Third paragraph. Votes shall be cast as provided in Article 7; except that in the event the election is for a provincial office, the Returning Officer may designate a list other than the Orange National List that can be read by all electors in that province.
Fourth paragraph. Following the end of the voting period, the Returning Officer shall record and publish the number of votes received by each candidate for each office, and shall declare the candidates receiving the most votes elected.
CHAPTER VII - ELECTION PROPAGANDA; POLLING
Article 18. During the period from the beginning of the time set for elections until the beginning of the voting period, candidates and political parties may circulate propaganda among the voters of the country, including on the Orange National List, provided that such messages do not contain any statement that is defamatory toward another candidate, party, or citizen. A statement is not defamatory if its truth can be proven.
Article 19. The Orange Web Site may be used for electoral propaganda, provided that a page for a specific candidate or party may be modified only by means of an e-mail from that candidate or party to the Webmaster of the Orange Web Site. A Web Page is subject to the same limitations as stated in Article 18.
Article 20. Polling data related to elections in Orange must disclose the percentage of the population responding to the poll, the method used in polling, and the number of persons polled by political party affiliation.
CHAPTER VIII - ELECTORAL JUSTICE
Article 21. Disputes related to the provisions of this Electoral Act shall be tried by the Upper Court of Justice, and shall take priority for trial over any other cases pending before the Upper Court.
(Example)
1. In this Schedule, the following definitions apply:
"ballot" refers to an e-mail message sent to the Returning Officer as provided in Article 7 of this Act.
"quota" means the number of votes sufficient to elect a candidate.
"surplus" means the number of votes which a candidate has obtained at any stage of counting votes in excess of the quota;
"transfer value" means that portion of a vote which is unused by (a) an elected candidate who has obtained a surplus, or (b) a candidate excluded on account of being the lowest in the poll and is therefore transferred to the candidate next in order of the elector's preference.
2. The number of first preferences for each candidate shall be counted.
3. The aggregate number of first preferences shall be divided by one more than the number of candidates required to be elected, and that quotient increased by one ten-thousandth, including any remainder rounded to the fourth decimal place. This shall be the quota, and no candidate shall be elected until he obtains a number of votes equal to or greater than the quota.
4. All candidates who have, after the first preferences have been counted, a number of first preferences equal to or greater than the quota shall be declared elected.
5. The following steps shall be repeated, beginning with the candidate with the largest surplus, in descending order until the number of candidates elected is equal to the number of contested seats:
(a) Where the number of first preferences obtained by a candidate is equal to the quota, all ballots on which a first preference is recorded for that candidate shall be set aside, and no further counting of these ballots shall take place.
(b) Where the number of first preferences obtained by a candidate is greater is in excess of the quota, the proportion of those preferences in excess of the quota shall be transferred to those candidates not yet declared elected, next in order of the electors' respective preferences, in the following manner:
(i) The ballots for the candidate with the largest number of votes shall be re-examined with the number of votes for each candidate not yet elected being counted.
(ii) The ballots for which no preferences are shown for any candidate not yet elected shall be set aside, and no further counting of these ballots shall take place.
(iii) The surplus of the elected candidate shall be divided by the number of ballots for which that candidate received a first preference, the resulting fraction being the transfer value.
6. Where the number of first preferences obtained by a candidate is in excess of the quota, the proportion of those preferences in excess of the quota shall be transferred to the other candidates not yet declared elected, next in order of the electors' respective preferences, in the following manner:
(a) All the ballots on which a first preference is recorded for the elected candidate shall be re-examined, and the number of second (third, or next consecutive) preferences shall be counted; however, no votes shall be counted for a candidate already declared elected.
(b) All ballots mentioned in paragraph (a) on which no further preferences are indicated are set aside as finally dealt with.
(c) The surplus of the elected candidate shall be divided by the total number of ballots obtained by him on counting the first preferences which indicate further preferences, and the resulting fraction shall be the transfer value;
(d) The number of second or other preferences, ascertained in paragraph (a) to be recorded for each unelected candidate, shall be multiplied by the transfer value.
(e) The resulting number, rounded to the fourth decimal place, shall be transferred to each unelected candidate, and added to the number of votes obtained by him on the counting of the first preferences.
7.
(a) Where, on the counting of the first preferences or on a transfer, more than one candidate has a surplus, the largest surplus shall first be dealt with, and if at that stage, more than one candidate has a surplus, the then largest surplus shall be dealt with, and so on, but if one candidate has obtained a surplus at a count or transfer previous to that at which another candidate obtains a surplus, the surplus of the former shall be first dealt with, according to the method provided in clause 6.
(b) Where two or more surpluses are equal, the surplus of the candidate who was the highest on the poll at the count or transfer at which they last had an unequal number of votes shall first be dealt with, and if they have had an unequal number of votes at all preceding counts or transfers, the Returning Officer shall decide which candidate's surplus shall be first dealt with.
8.
(a) Where after the first preferences have been counted and all surpluses, if any, have been transferred as provided by this Schedule, less than the number of candidates required to be elected has obtained the quota, the procedure stated in clause 6 shall be repeated, beginning with the candidate with the least number of first preferences, in which case the candidate with the least number of first preferences is excluded, and all the votes obtained by him shall be transferred to the candidate next highest in order of the electors' respective preferences.
(b) The votes obtained by an excluded candidate which indicate no further valid preferences shall be set aside as finally dealt with.
(c) The other votes obtained by an excluded candidate shall then be dealt with in the order of the transfers in which he obtained them, and their transfer value shall be the value which they were received at, multiplied by the number of votes in the batch which indicate further preferences. Each transfer which takes place under paragraphs (b) or (c) shall be deemed a separate transfer.
9. Where on a transfer it is found that on all of a batch of ballots to be transferred ther is no candidate opposite whose name a number is placed, other than a candidate whose name a number is placed, other than a candidate whose name has already been declared elected or excluded, those ballots and their votes shall be set aside as exhausted.
Example (not part of the text of the law):
How elections for the Floresters are conducted under Hare-Clark
In this example, we will step through Schedule 1 to demonstrate how votes are counted. The data used are from the elections for the Penguinean Althing, September 1998. In this election, 4 Thingmen were to be elected.
2. The number of first preferences shall be counted.
|
|
Votes Cast |
No. of first preferences [1] |
||||||||
|
Candidate |
I |
II |
III |
IV |
V |
VI |
VII |
VIII |
IX |
|
|
Hamm |
1 |
1 |
1 |
5 |
3 |
- |
3 |
4 |
- |
3 |
|
Hart |
2 |
3 |
4 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
5 |
5 |
3 |
2 |
|
Harwood |
5 |
4 |
5 |
2 |
5 |
1 |
4 |
3 |
4 |
1 |
|
Lawless |
3 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
|
Morgan |
4 |
5 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
|
Total number of first preferences: |
9 |
|||||||||
3. The aggregate number of first preferences shall be divided by one more than the number of candidates required to be elected, and that quotient increased by one ten-thousandth, including any remainder rounded to the fourth decimal place. This shall be the quota, and no candidate shall be elected until he obtains a number of votes equal to or greater than the quota.
|
Aggregate number of first preferences: |
9 |
|
Divided by candidates to be elected |
÷ 4 |
|
|
1.8 |
|
|
+ .0001 |
|
Quota |
1.8001 |
5. The following steps shall be repeated, beginning with the candidate with the largest surplus, in descending order until the number of candidates elected is equal to the number of contested seats:
(a) Where the number of first preferences obtained by a candidate is equal to the quota, all ballots on which a first preference is recorded for that candidate shall be set aside, and no further counting of these ballots shall take place.
Not applicable in this election.
(b) Where the number of first preferences obtained by a candidate is in excess of the quota, the proportion of those preferences in excess of the quota shall be transferred to those candidates not yet declared elected, next in order of the electors' respective preferences, in the following manner:
(i) The ballots for the candidate with the largest number of votes shall be re-examined with the number of votes for each candidate not yet elected being counted.
(ii) The ballots for which no preferences are shown for any candidate not yet elected shall be set aside, and no further counting of these ballots shall take place.
(iii) The surplus of the elected candidate shall be divided by the number of ballots for which that candidate received a first preference, the resulting fraction being the transfer value.
The following candidates were elected, having a vote in excess of the quota (1.8001):
Hamm had 3 votes, Hart and Lawless had 2 votes each. These three are now elected.
Harwood and Morgan, with 1 vote each, have not yet been elected.
Hamm's surplus was 3 - 1.8001 (quota) = 1.1999 votes
|
Hamm's surplus: |
1.1999 |
|
Divided by votes for which Hamm was the first preference: |
÷ 3 |
|
Transfer value |
0.4 |
6. Where the number of first preferences obtained by a candidate is in excess of the quota, the proportion of those preferences in excess of the quota shall be transferred to the other candidates not yet declared elected, next in order of the electors' respective preferences, in the following manner:
(a) All the ballots on which a first preference is recorded for the elected candidate shall be re-examined, and the number of second (third, or next consecutive) preferences shall be counted; however, no votes shall be counted for a candidate already declared elected.
Preferences where Hamm was the first preference:
|
Candidate |
I |
II |
III |
|
Harwood |
5 |
4 |
5 |
|
Morgan |
4 |
5 |
3 |
|
Transfer to: |
Morgan |
Harwood |
Morgan |
(b) All ballots mentioned in paragraph (a) on which no further preferences are indicated are set aside as finally dealt with.
(c) The surplus of the elected candidate shall be divided by the total number of ballots obtained by him on counting the first preferences which indicate further preferences, and the resulting fraction shall be the transfer value;
(d) The number of second or other preferences, ascertained in paragraph (a) to be recorded for each unelected candidate, shall be multiplied by the transfer value.
(e) The resulting number, rounded to the fourth decimal place, shall be transferred to each unelected candidate, and added to the number of votes obtained by him on the counting of the first preferences.
|
Vote subtotal |
Higher preferences |
Share of Hamm's surplus |
Subtotal of vote |
|
Harwood |
1 |
0.4 |
1.4 |
|
Morgan |
2 |
0.7999 |
1.7999 |
To check our work: 0.7999 + 0.4 = 1.999, which is Hamm's surplus.
Since neither candidate yet has the quota of 1.8001, neither is yet elected.
7.
(a) Where, on the counting of the first preferences or on a transfer, more than one candidate has a surplus, the largest surplus shall first be dealt with, and if at that stage, more than one candidate has a surplus, the then largest surplus shall be dealt with, and so on, but if one candidate has obtained a surplus at a count or transfer previous to that at which another candidate obtains a surplus, the surplus of the former shall be first dealt with, according to the method provided in clause 6.
Not applicable to this election.
(b) Where two or more surpluses are equal, the surplus of the candidate who was the highest on the poll at the count or transfer at which they last had an unequal number of votes shall first be dealt with, and if they have had an unequal number of votes at all preceding counts or transfers, the Returning Officer shall decide which candidate's surplus shall be first dealt with.
In the original voting Hart and Lawless had the same number of first preferences. The Returning Officer decided to distribute Lawless' surplus (If the Returning Officer had decided to distribute Hart's surplus, the result would have been the same, but this is not necessarily true).
Lawless' surplus was 2 - 1.8001 (quota) = 0.1999 votes
|
Hamm's surplus: |
0.1999 |
|
Divided by votes for which Lawless was the first preference: |
÷ 2 |
|
Transfer value |
0.1 |
Preferences where Lawless was the first preference:
|
Candidate |
VII |
VIII |
|||
|
Harwood |
4 |
3 |
|||
|
Morgan |
2 |
2 |
|||
|
Transfer to: |
Morgan |
Morgan |
|||
|
Vote subtotal |
Subtotal including Hamm's surplus |
Share of Lawless' surplus |
Total |
||
|
Harwood |
1.4 |
0 |
1.4 |
||
|
Morgan |
1.7999 |
0.1999 |
1.9998 |
||
Since Morgan's vote is now greater than the quota of 1.8001, Morgan is elected, and the count is completed.
Clauses 8-9 of Schedule 1 do not apply in this election.
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