Single Transferable Vote Law and Legal Definition
The single transferable vote refers to a preference voting system in multi-member constituencies that minimizes wasted votes in multi-candidate elections and ensures that votes are explicitly for candidates rather than party lists. In single transferable vote, voters are able to rank as many candidates, both within parties and across different parties, as they wish in order of preference. Candidates who reach a certain quota are deemed to have been elected. Until sufficient candidates reach the quota, the surplus votes of candidates elected on the first count and the votes of those with fewest votes after subsequent counts are distributed on the basis of preferences to the remaining candidates.
