New-York tribune., 1901-01-31
You can and you can't,
Yod will and you won't;
You'll be damned il you do,
You'll be damned il YOU don't.
SECOND CHOICE VOTING.

We have several times urged our readers in
expressing their preference among possible can
didateS for Mayor to send in record of their
second choice. and have promised 10 analyZe
the returns with a view to illustrating the possi
hle usefulness of the true Australian system.
It's advocates claim for il the greatest useful
ness as a real test of public opinion enabling
the majority in every possible alternative TO
have its way and preventing minority from
controlling affairs owing 10 divided council
among the majority concerning issues aside
from the main question finally passed upon
The records of The Tribune Mayoralty vote
have been tabulate so that the second choice
of each individual voter can he counted in case
the first choice shall be eliminated from the
race. but no second choice votes will lac counted
unless the corresponding expressions of first
preference of no avail. The second choice
votes recorded in the tables already printed,
merely show the aggregate of all seconds for
each man by whOmsOever east. Doubtless some
who voted for Mr.. Sargent gave their alterna-
tive suffrage 10 Mr.. Low. These two men at
the moment happen Ia be the leaders. suppos
ing that one by one all The minor names are
eliminated until only these TWO are left he
fore an actual majority of the votes east can
be counted for either. In that case all the sec
Ond choice votes of the primary supporters OF
minor candidates would be counted for the
principals as east. bnt no second choice of Il
Sargent man would he counted for Low and no
second choice of Low man would be counted
for Sargent. Thus every first choice would be
exclusively effective long aS its candidate
was in the field If The elimination Of all but
two candidates WAS not required to secure an
actual majority. of course no second choices OF
the third or fourth candidates would be counted
To swell the totals of their rivals. The second
choice votes are merely held in reserve 10 as
sure to every citizen his due weight up 10 the
very deciding point in the election. and not
deprive him Of his voice at the crisis because
he has happened to hold preliminary views not
shared by the great body of his fellows.
Perhaps the usefulness of this method may lie
illustrated hy imaginary application TO the con
test of 1897. Mr.. Van Wyck was elected by
minority. receiving 233997 votes to Mr. Lows
l5l540 and General Tracy's lOl.S73. There
were five other candidates. We suppose that
comparatively few, perhaps not more than five
thousand, Republicans really Tammany
men at heart, and for a second choice would
have preferred Van Wyck TO Low. Nor could
there have been larger number of Citizens
Union men who shared the feeling expressed
by some that the city might as well be governed
by Tammany as by a Republican of General
Tracy's high character. SO we may assume
that the bulk of the Low and Tracy votes
would on second choice have gone to the leader
against Van Wyck. The final choice lay be-
tween Low and Van Wyck Eliminating the
others, and dividing the second choice votes of
the supporters of minor candidates. as we may
suppose from the tendencies of the parties they
would have been cast we reach this probable
result: