I know it contradicts a core assumption of many members of this group, but plurality winners aren't always so terrible. Some presidents who have been elected with only a plurality of the US popular votes were among our best presidents, while some who were elected with huge majorities were among our worst.
The plurality popular vote winners include Polk (instrumental for getting Texas into the U.S., a mixed blessing?), Taylor (who helped California be admitted into the union, a clear blessing), Lincoln the first time, Garfield, Cleveland both times, Wilson both times, Truman, Kennedy, Nixon the first time (he did his best work in his first term...going to China, Family Assistance Plan), and Clinton both times. Getting elected with majorities were Pierce (who disastrously signed the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854), Grant both times, Harding, Coolidge, Nixon the 2nd time. Of course, this should not be confused with the miserable presidential elections in which someone who didn't even get a plurality still took the office (J.Q. Adams, Hayes, Benjamin Harrison, and George W. Bush the first time). Jesse Ventura, Lowell Weicker, and Walter Hickel, the only three governors elected in minor party tickets in the last fifty years, all won with pluralities. I doubt they could have won if there had been a majority-vote requirement. The last third party victory in a US House race (New York in 1948, Vito Marcantonio), ahd the last third party victory in a US Senate race (New York 1970, James Buckley) were also instances of plurality winners. --- Dave Ketchum <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: --------------------------------- Plurality should be more recognized as a loser - too easy to get two candidates on side X of an issue and one on side Y. Assuming popularity of X and Y is any place near a tie, the X candidates will share the X votes, and the Y candidate will win due to no sharing, rather than needing to be more popular than side X. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com ---- election-methods mailing list - see http://electorama.com/em for list info