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  • © 2007

Designing an All-Inclusive Democracy

Consensual Voting Procedures for Use in Parliaments, Councils and Committees

Editors:

  • This book describes consensual forms of voting and seeks to destroy the myth that politics must be adversarial.

  • Numerous examples, clearly depicted in tables, illustrate the different voting procedures.

  • Theoretical analysis by renowned scientists from social choice theory.

  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

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Table of contents (10 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages I-XV
  2. Introduction

    1. Introduction

      Pages 1-12
  3. A Critique

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 97-97
    2. The Theory of Voting and the Borda Systems

      • Maurice Salles
      Pages 99-108
    3. Inclusive Decision-making in Mediation and Politics

      • Phil Kearney, Aileen Tierney
      Pages 124-132
  4. Back Matter

    Pages 147-186

About this book

Democracy is for everybody, not just a majority. This book describes the voting procedures by which majority rule may be replaced by a more consensual system of governance. In a word, such an inclusive polity can be achieved by asking the voters or, more usually, their representatives in councils and parliaments, to state their preferences, so to facilitate the identification of that option which gains the highest average preference score. The first part of the book describes three different voting procedures, the Modified Borda Count, the Quota Borda System and the Matrix Vote, and gives a number of hypothetical examples, all clearly depicted in tables. In the second part, the voting mechanisms are discussed against the background of the theory of voting, social choice theory, human rights and mediation practice. The book includes a foreword by Sir Michael Dummett and contributions by Elizabeth Meehan, Hannu Nurmi and Maurice Salles, among others.

Reviews

From the reviews:

"Emerson is primarily concerned with societies that are deeply split politically along ethnical, cultural, or religious lines. … The book must be seen as part of a project to promote ‘non-majoritarian’ methods, especially in deeply split societies. … The participation of election theorists and law specialists in the book, and the book’s acceptance by a major publisher show a serious commitment from Emerson et al." (Eivind Stensholt, Voting matters, Issue 24, 2007)

"The inclination to identify the popular will with the recipient of a majority of votes has been criticized … . Peter Emerson’s edited volume, Designing an All-Inclusive Democracy: Consensual Voting Procedures For Use in Parliaments, Councils and Committees, offers an alternative, ‘non-adversarial democratic structure’ … . Emerson and the other contributors to this volume deserve credit for crafting a practical and accessible entry into a debate typically conducted in technical, theoretical terms, and for highlighting the importance of discussion to the choice process." (Joel Parker, Public Choice, Vol. 135, 2008)

"Peter Emerson … has written a book called Designing an All-Inclusive Democracy: Consensual Voting Procedures For Use in Parliaments Councils and Committees, which is a decisive attempt to change the situation. … the sense of urgency these scientists have invested in their designs is remarkable. … the book Designing an All-Inclusive Democracy, which may be recommended not only to those who believe there is a strong connection between particular electoral procedures and particular results." (Roman Chytilek, Central European Political Studies Review, Spring/Summer, 2008)

“Emerson combines techniques for the dynamics of a group interaction with a voting rule, the intent of this mixture is to engender a civil discourse leading to more useful group decision outcomes. … There is much to learn from this book, so I suggest that it should be in your bookshelf. … this is a book that should be seriously considered by practitioners involved in group decisions.” (Donald G. Saari, Social Choice and Welfare, Vol. 35 (2), July, 2010)

Editors and Affiliations

  • The de Borda Institute, Belfast, Northern Ireland

    Peter Emerson

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Designing an All-Inclusive Democracy

  • Book Subtitle: Consensual Voting Procedures for Use in Parliaments, Councils and Committees

  • Editors: Peter Emerson

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-33164-3

  • Publisher: Springer Berlin, Heidelberg

  • eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and Law, Political Science and International Studies (R0)

  • Copyright Information: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-540-33163-6Published: 03 May 2007

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-642-44245-2Published: 28 November 2014

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-540-33164-3Published: 05 May 2007

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XV, 187

  • Topics: Political Science, Microeconomics

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access