Rohan Review Of Condorcet Voting

Rohan Tandon

 

Optimizing Modern Elections – Nathan Pflueger

 

Overview:

 

The purpose of Nathan’s website is twofold – to serve as a political instrument in advocating the feasibility of using the internet in elections, as well as to inform people of both the pitfalls and advantages of using this technology in terms of the cryptographic challenges it presents.

 

Strengths:

 

à Concept: The concept of the website is undoubtedly unique. The aggregate information service he provides seeks to build upon a theory (Condorcet) that was revolutionary when it emerged in the 1600s, but has come to be taken for granted. The institution of voting is fundamental in any democratic society, and should not suffer from stagnancy but instead constantly be made better in lieu with new developments, especially technological ones.

 

à Ethics: So far, the site has an effective didactic approach. What I liked most was that the page on Election Theory addressed the question “What is a Vote?” before anything else, effectively establishing the political motivation behind his writing.

 

à Site Plan: Elements of this are well grounded in realistic considerations. The revenue model is an example of this. The constraints he will encounter from such a model of revenue collection (donations) enables him to take a clearer view of the long run goals of his project. The organization of the site is nice and simple, and serves well for easy navigation.

 

Potential Challenges:

 

àAudience: Nathan’s website faces the challenge of being a political advocacy website that also deals with mathematical elements such as cryptography and the Condorcet Paradox/ Majority Rule Voting. Given that his designated audience is “all citizens of democratic societies who would like to see a movement towards efficiency and rationality in elections”, ensuring that the site appeals equally to groups that are more politically oriented or mathematically oriented will be a straddle. Using the a didactic approach, and dedicating pages to teaching users the cryptographic fundamentals and Condorcet preference rankings could help mitigate this divide.

 

à Developments in Cryptology: Breakthrough developments in cryptology can be complex. Resorting to the traditional “academic essay format” may be the easiest way to do this, but can shy away users. Figuring out a way to convey this information effectively and ensure that users can “know” what it is they are advocating is a challenge. My suggestion would yet again be to present such developments by instructive methods, perhaps in the form of a tutorial, that leads the user through the developments, and which is linked heavily to sources that provide definitions and further reading on terminology used in conveying the development.