Voting feature

To help make voting in your community easier and fairer, you can now choose how you want votes to be counted.

When you create a new vote, you can choose the Voting Type that works best for your project, i.e. whether you need a simple plurality or a ranked choice method.

To understand this better, listen to the following audio:

25MB

Choosing Community Voting Styles.wav

What’s New

Before, whenever you created a vote, there was only one way to count votes. Now, you have two (and in the future four) options to choose from:

• Plurality (Hybrid): A simple, easy way—everyone picks one or more favorite(s), and the option with the most votes wins. Unlike traditional plurality voting, this hybrid approach allows voters to select multiple preferences.

• Ranked Choice: A smarter way—everyone can rank their favorites, so the most broadly liked option wins. Currently, we only offer the Condorcet IRV method, we'll also add Instant Runoff Voting and Meek STV methods, which all require the user to rank the available options (or candidates).

You’ll see a new dropdown menu for Voting Type when you create a vote.

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Understanding Voting Type

When creating a new vote, you can now select from two Voting Types. Each type counts votes differently and can affect which option (or candidate) wins. Select the type that best matches your needs.

Plurality Voting

What is Plurality Voting? Plurality voting is a straightforward method where each voter chooses one (or more) option(s). The option with the most votes wins, even if it does not get more than half of the total votes. This method is sometimes known as "First Past the Post".

How it works:

• Each voter picks a single (or multiple) preferred option(s).

• The option with the highest number of votes is the winner.

Example: Suppose 10 people are voting on three features:

• Feature A: 4 votes

• Feature B: 3 votes

• Feature C: 3 votes Result: Feature A wins (it has the most votes).

Advantages:

• Simple for voters and organizers.

• Quick to set up and understand.

Limitations:

• Can split votes among similar options.

• The winner may not always reflect the broadest preference of the group.

Condorcet IRV (Instant-Runoff Voting)

What is Condorcet IRV? Condorcet IRV combines “Condorcet” and “Instant-Runoff Voting” methods and allows voters to rank choices in order of preference. This process aims to find the most generally favored option.

How it works:

• Voters rank the options (1st choice, 2nd choice, etc.).

• If an option wins every head-to-head comparison against others (Condorcet winner), it is selected.

• If not, the IRV process is used:

  • The option with the fewest first-choice votes is eliminated.

  • Votes for the eliminated option are transferred to the voter’s next preferred choice.

  • This continues until one option has a majority.

Example: 5 voters are ranking options A, B, and C.

• If A beats B and C in all direct comparisons, A wins.

• If not, IRV is used to find the option most preferred as their next-best choice.

Advantages:

• Reduces the risk of "vote splitting".

• Usually results in a winner with broad support.

Limitations:

• More complex than plurality voting.

• Voters need to rank all options.

• Ties are common if there is only a small group of voters

Comparison Table

Voting Type	How to Vote	How Winner is Chosen	Ease of Use	Best For
Plurality	Pick one option	Most votes wins	Easiest	Simple decisions
Condorcet IRV	Rank options	Broadest support after rounds	Moderate	Multiple choices, fairness

Choose "Plurality" for quick, simple votes. Choose "Condorcet IRV" when you have several similar options and want the result to represent the group’s broader preferences.