MIT IAP

IAP 2002 Activities by Sponsor

Alan Natapoff

The Wisdom of the Electoral College Now and in 2000: How the Law of Large Numbers Destroys Voting Power Under a Simple Raw Popular Vote.
Alan Natapoff
Wed Jan 16, 12-02:00pm, Room 37-212

No enrollment limit, no advance sign up
Single session event

We will look at the way in which electoral systems promote or
destroy individual voting power-- including mathematical results that show that without districting, large electorates cannot provide voting power for their voters. The state-districted Electoral College system provides that power; with a small change, it could empower millions of impotent voters
in several states. We'll trace the anomalies that have enlivened this debate and examine the anti-trust aspect of electoral laws and their analogy to the rules of baseball: Both sets of rules try to compel fine-grained competition despite the obstacles of a large-statistics environment. In the end, the analysis rejects the view of the American Bar Association, the League of Women Voters, and the majority of Congress whose vote nearly destroyed the individual's voting power.
Contact: Alan Natapoff, 37-219, 253-7757, natapoff@space.mit.edu


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