Math Goes Pop! - CNN Light Years guest post: Why a different voting system might be better

CNN Light Years guest post: Why a different voting system might be better

March 16, 2012

Hi Everyone,

In an attempt to spread the joy and cheer of mathematics to a broader audience, starting this month, I will occasionally be writing articles for CNN's new science and technology blog, Light Years. Fear not, most of my content will still be appearing at Math Goes Pop, and every time one of my guest posts goes live, I will let you know about it here as well. Today the topic is voting systems, something I have discussed on this blog before. Here's a piece of the intro to pique your interest:

When the results of an election (primary or otherwise) run counter to our desires, it is easy to scapegoat the political process. The right person didn't win, we may argue, because the system itself is broken. The two-party system, for example, is sometimes cited as a leading cause of the current dysfunction in Washington. But perhaps much of what ails the political climate comes from an underlying mathematical dilemma in the way we determine the winners of our elections. The mathematics of voting highlights many problems with current systems, and also proposes some interesting solutions.

Want to read more? Click here!

Psst ... did you know I have a brand new website full of interactive stories? You can check it out here!