Quote:
Originally Posted by Matt D
And if you don't have any preferences other than your number 1 choice, you simply do not mark any candidates other than that one.
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This is the fatal flaw in AV: The grand claim that every MP has to achieve 50% support in order to get elected. Even if we leave aside the somewhat optimistic claim that a 2nd or 3rd preference vote amounts to anything like 'support', the fact is, if enough people fail to mark anything more than a first preference on their paper, sooner or later a returning officer is going to find out he's run out of papers to re-allocate before anyone in his constituency has crossed the magic 50% winning line.
AV is entirely capable of electing MPs who don't get that 50%. It isn't worth the name 'PR', is as likely to result in un-proportional results and frankly those who are enthusiastic about proportional representation should be campaigning against AV fervently.