The method you choose decides how votes are counted and who wins. Here is how each voting method works, when to use it, and which ones you can run on vote.direct, in plain language. Every method below is supported on the platform.
The option or candidate with the most votes wins, even without a majority.
Voters select several options up to a set limit; the top finishers win.
Voters rank candidates by preference; last-place candidates are eliminated until one has a majority.
If nobody has a majority, all but the top two are eliminated at once and ballots transfer.
The multi-seat form of ranked voting: surpluses and eliminations transfer votes until every seat is filled.
Each position in a ranking awards points; the highest totals win.
The winner is the candidate who beats every other in head-to-head comparison.
Voters mark every candidate they approve of; the most-approved candidates win.
Voters score each candidate independently on a scale; the highest totals win.
Score every candidate, then the two highest totals go to an automatic runoff.
Voters get multiple votes they can split across candidates or concentrate on one.
A proposition passes or fails by tallying yes against no, with abstentions recorded separately.
Each ballot counts in proportion to an assigned weight, such as ownership share.
One ballot per unit, lot, or household, even when several people co-own it.
An eligible voter delegates their vote to another eligible voter.
Plurality voting (also called first-past-the-post) awards the win to whichever option receives the most votes, even if that is less than a majority. It is the simplest single-winner method and the default for most quick elections.
Plurality only requires the most votes, so a candidate can win with 35% if no one else has more. Majority voting requires more than 50%, which usually means a runoff or an instant-runoff (ranked-choice) round when no candidate clears the threshold on the first count.
Cumulative voting gives each voter multiple votes that they can spread across candidates or concentrate on one. It lets a minority group pool its votes to elect at least one representative, which is why some corporate and cooperative bylaws require it.
Voters rank candidates in order of preference. If no one wins a majority of first choices, the last-place candidate is eliminated and those ballots move to each voter's next choice. Rounds continue until one candidate has more than half of the remaining votes.
STV is ranked-choice voting for several seats at once. Voters rank candidates; a candidate reaching the quota is elected and their surplus votes transfer to next preferences at fractional value, while last-place candidates are excluded and their votes transfer whole, until every seat is filled. It produces proportional results — a group with a fifth of the votes can win about a fifth of the seats. vote.direct counts STV by the weighted inclusive Gregory method and publishes every transfer stage.
Each voter marks every candidate they find acceptable, with no limit. The candidates approved by the most voters win. It is the simplest method that avoids vote-splitting between similar candidates.
For a simple decision, plurality is fine. For a single winner among three or more candidates, ranked choice (instant runoff) or a Condorcet count produces a consensus winner. To fill several seats at once, use multiple-choice (block) voting, STV for proportional results, or cumulative voting if you want to protect minority representation. Approval and scored voting suit low-conflict picks. For bylaws and budgets, use a Yes/No/Abstain measure with the supermajority threshold your documents require. Your governing documents may require a specific method, so check them first.
vote.direct can require email, SMS, or assisted government-ID checks and accepts one ballot per eligible credential, with a full platform audit trail.
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