So what, exactly, is AV about?

[aussiedave]

Hello all,

This is my third post on AV. Probably not the last you will hear from me, but if it's any comfort, the AV Referendum is less than three weeks away, and I will return to my less-vocal ways afterwards. Thanks for bearing with me.

Comments

I still aint sure

[ext_507304]

I still dont think the "yes" arguement has answered the chief worry I have which is that AV will push the main parties even closer to each other in the centre as they scramble for second preference votes.

I have heard far to many times on the doorstep people complaining "they are all the same it doesnt make a difference how I vote". AV does nothing to answer this IMHO and had great potential to make it worse.

It is a good summary of the two proposals though so I will pass it on.

Re: I still aint sure

[aussiedave]

All I can say is that it didn't have that effect in Australia. The elections have become more populist, certainly, more about political point-scoring and muck-raking, but that's been more to do with the introduction of compulsory voting. That is, it's less about attracting centrist voters than about attracting totally uninformed voters.

For what it's worth, I don't support compulsory voting. I think everyone should vote, but I also think everyone should inform themselves of the issues first.

Re: I still aint sure

[aussiedave]

It's also something that's already true. The primary parties will do pretty much the same things to try and get as many second-preference votes as possible as they currently do to get as many first-preference votes as possible. The centrist voting bloc is already the battleground; the parties already create wide, moderate policy platforms to try and rope in tactical votes.

[vulalamb]

This article was vey helpful to me. It helped me to be informed and more aware. The details were such a blessing, thanks.