At least five U.S. presidential elections have been won by the
second most popular candidate, but these results were not
inevitable. In fact, such an unfair outcome need never happen
again, and as William Poundstone shows in "Gaming the Vote," the
solution is lurking right under our noses. In all five cases, the
vote was upset by a "spoiler"--a minor candidate who took enough
votes away from the most popular candidate to tip the election to
someone else. The spoiler effect is more than a glitch. It is a
consequence of one of the most surprising intellectual discoveries
of the twentieth century: the "impossibility theorem" of the Nobel
laureate economist Kenneth Arrow. His theorem asserts that voting
is fundamentally unfair--a finding that has not been lost on
today's political consultants. Armed with polls, focus groups, and
smear campaigns, political strategists are exploiting the
mathematical faults of the simple majority vote. The answer to the
spoiler problem lies in a system called range voting, which would
satisfy both right and left, and "Gaming the Vote "assesses the
obstacles confronting any attempt to change the U.S. electoral
system. The latest of several books by Poundstone on the theme of
how important scientific ideas have affected the real world,
"Gaming the Vote "is both a wry expose of how the political system
really works and a call to action. William Poundstone is the
bestselling author of ten nonfiction books, including "Labyrinths
of Reason "and "The Recursive Universe," both of which were
nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. At least five U.S. presidential
elections have been won by the second most popular candidate. The
reason was a "spoiler"--a minor candidate who takes enough votes
away from the most popular candidate to tip the election to someone
else. The spoiler effect is more than a glitch. It is a consequence
of one of the most surprising intellectual discoveries of the
twentieth century: the "impossibility theorem" of Nobel laureate
economist Kenneth Arrow. The impossibility theorem asserts that
voting is fundamentally unfair--a finding that has not been lost on
today's political consultants. Armed with polls, focus groups, and
smear campaigns, political strategists are exploiting the
mathematical faults of the simple majority vote. In recent election
cycles, this has led to such unlikely tactics as Republicans
funding ballot drives for Green spoilers and Democrats paying for
right-wing candidates' radio ads. "Gaming" "the Vote "shows that
there is a solution to the spoiler problem that will satisfy both
right and left. A system called range voting, already widely used
on the Internet, is the fairest voting method of all, according to
computer studies. Despite these findings, range voting remains
controversial, and "Gaming the Vote "assesses the obstacles
confronting any attempt to change the American electoral system.
The latest of several books by William Poundstone on the theme of
how important scientific ideas have affected the real world,
"Gaming" "the Vote "is a wry expose of how the political system
really works, and a call to action. "Poundstone always writes with
the premise that thinking can be entertaining. His latest book,
"Gaming the Vote," clearly reasoned, well-researched, and often
amusing, deals with the crucially important question: How best does
a government 'by the people' decide what to do? He does not find a
definitive answer, but he shows why it is so difficult and prepares
the citizen to face the question responsibly."--Rush Holt, U.S.
House of Representatives (NJ-12)
"Americans' most recent encounter with 'the spoiler effect' was
in 2000, when Ralph Nader diverted enough votes from Al Gore in
Florida, at least one poll suggested, to tip the election to George
W. Bush. By Poundstone's reckoning, four other presidential races
were probably skewed by minor-party candidates--'an 11 percent rate
of catastrophic failure, ' he writes . . . Poundstone, the author
of 10 previous books, has the popular science writer's knack for
wrapping difficult material in enticing anecdotes. How can you not
be seduced by a book that uses the Hot or Not Web site to
illustrate range voting?"--Mick Sussman, "The New York Times Book
Review
""William Poundstone's "Gaming the Vote" arrives amid unusually
high reader interest in equitable voting. And Mr. Poundstone is a
clear, entertaining explicator of election science. He easily
bridges the gaps between theoretical and popular thinking, between
passionate political debate and cool mathematical
certainty."--Janet Maslin, "The New York Times
"""Gaming the Vote" is about the problem of an election system that
selects Candidate B when a majority would have preferred Candidate
A. The book's author, William Poundstone, is not a political guy.
He is a science writer. He writes not with a partisan's bile but
with a technician's delight in explaining all the ways our
democracy can give us what we don't want . . . This is a book that
goes down easily. The reader who likes puzzles, math and politics
will especially enjoy it . . . Poundstone is not a social scientist
showing off but a storyteller."--Bruce Ramsey, "The Seattle
Times
""Bill Poundstone writes good books. His second and fourth, "The
Recursive Universe" and "Labyrinths of Reason" were nominated for
Pulitzer prizes. His classic "Prisoner's Dilemma" is among the best
books about game theory ever written for a popular audience, and
his "Fortune's Formula" tells the story of a little known gambling
strategy that works wonders in casinos, at racetracks, and on Wall
Street. His latest, on voting theory, is among his best. Moreover,
it appears at a time when the political process seems receptive to
reform . . . Poundstone invigorates what would otherwise be an
abstract discussion of voting procedures by drawing pertinent
examples from the pages of history."--James Case, "Siam""
News
""Poundstone always writes with the premise that thinking can be
entertaining. His latest book, "Gaming the Vote," clearly reasoned,
well-researched, and often amusing, deals with the crucially
important question: How best does a government 'by the people'
decide what to do? He does not find a definitive answer, but he
shows why it is so difficult and prepares the citizen to face the
question responsibly."--Rush Holt, U.S. House of Representatives
(NJ-12)
"In 1948 economist Kenneth Arrow dropped a bombshell on political
scientists. He proved that no voting system can be perfect.
Poundstone's eleventh book is a superb attempt to demystify Arrow's
amazing achievement, and to defend 'range voting' as the best
voting system yet devised. His account is interwoven with a
colorful history of American elections, from the corrupt politics
of Louisiana to Ralph Nader as the 'spoiler' whose splitting of the
Democratic votes helped elect George W. Bush. A chapter covers
Lewis Carroll's little-known valiant efforts to solve the voting
problem. A raft of amusing political cartoons enliven Poundstone's
prose. There is no better introduction to the inescapable flaws and
paradoxes of all voting systems than this eye-opening, timely
volume."--Martin Gardner, author
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