Which voting method allows members to cast votes multiplied by the number of positions and permit distributing votes among positions or propositions as they choose, provided it is authorized in bylaws or state statutes?

Which voting method allows members to cast votes multiplied by the number of positions and permit distributing votes among positions or propositions as they choose, provided it is authorized in bylaws or state statutes?

• A. Secret voting
• B. Cumulative voting
• C. Plurality voting
• D. Straight-ticket voting

Answer: (B)

Cumulative voting lets members cast multiple votes in an election: the number of votes equals the number of open positions times one vote per position, and those votes can be distributed among candidates or propositions as the member wishes, as long as this approach is authorized by bylaws or state statutes. This feature—the ability to concentrate votes on a preferred candidate or spread votes across several options—is what sets it apart. The other methods don’t offer that flexibility: secret voting concerns privacy, not vote distribution; plurality voting assigns one vote per seat with the winner having the most votes, and straight-ticket voting lets you vote for an entire party’s slate without distributing votes among individual positions or propositions.

Cumulative voting lets members cast multiple votes in an election: the number of votes equals the number of open positions times one vote per position, and those votes can be distributed among candidates or propositions as the member wishes, as long as this approach is authorized by bylaws or state statutes. This feature—the ability to concentrate votes on a preferred candidate or spread votes across several options—is what sets it apart. The other methods don’t offer that flexibility: secret voting concerns privacy, not vote distribution; plurality voting assigns one vote per seat with the winner having the most votes, and straight-ticket voting lets you vote for an entire party’s slate without distributing votes among individual positions or propositions.