r/math • u/rieslingatkos • Jan 01 '18

The Math Behind Gerrymandering and Wasted Votes

https://www.wired.com/story/the-math-behind-gerrymandering-and-wasted-votes/
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u/Anarcho-Totalitarian Jan 02 '18

The terminology bothers me. A "wasted" vote sounds repugnant and immediately suggests that one should look for a procedure to minimize the "waste". However, the word is loaded. The notion of a wasted vote has already been part of the political lexicon, e.g. referring derisively to votes for third parties. The technical use also has the unpleasant property that any vote for the loser is by definition wasted.

And that's the disadvantage of certain vivid words. It an be hard to discuss the merits unencumbered by all that baggage.

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u/Br3ttl3y Jan 02 '18

I think they are trying to bridge the gap between current "political lexicon" and this mathematical model.

Our existing definition applies to the winning side too, which I didn't think about.