How does the voting work?
Here at Bucks, we use two voting systems: Alternative Vote (AV) AND Single Transferable Voting (STV).
With the AV system, the voter puts a number by each candidate, with one for their favourite, two for their second favourite and so on. Voters can put numbers on as many or as few as they wish.
A candidate will be elected if more than half the voters put them down as their favourite. If nobody gets half, the numbers provide instructions for where you want your vote to go if your favourite candidate cannot win. The candidate who came last is eliminated and the counters look at these instructions to move the votes of the people who voted for them to their second favourite candidate. This process continues until one candidate has half of the votes and is elected.
AV is used in elections that have one post available e.g. Sabbatical Officer elections.
All voting will be available 24/7 online at bucksstudentsunion.org/elections during the elections period (10am Monday 4 March - noon Friday 8 March). Do remember that you can only vote once in each election.
Using the STV system, voter’s number a list of candidates in order of preference at the time in which they vote. Their favourite as number one, their second favourite as number two, and so on. Voters can put a number next to as many or as few candidates as they like. The numbers tell the people counting to move your vote if your favourite candidate has enough votes already or stands no chance of winning.
To get elected, a candidate needs a set amount of votes, known as the quota. The people counting the votes work out the quota based on the number of vacancies and the number of votes cast.
Each voter has one vote. Once the counting has finished, any candidate who has more numbers ones than the quota wins a post. But, rather than ignore extra votes a candidate got after the amount they need to win, these votes move to each voter’s second favourite candidate.
If no one reaches the quota, then the people counting the vote remove the least popular candidate. People who voted for them have their votes moved to their second favourite candidate. This process continues until every position has been filled.
The STV System is used in elections that have more than one post available e.g. Student Trustees and NUS delegates.
How do I vote?
- Visit the elections page and find the election you wish to vote in
- Log in using your Blackboard details
- Find your election and click on 'candidate list.'
- Click the 'Vote' button, and you're all set!
To see a step-by-step guide on how to vote, you can watch a video
here