Institutionalizing uncertainty: the choice of electoral formulas

• Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba Martos ; Alberto Penadés de la Cruz ^[1]
  1. [1] Universidad de Salamanca

     Universidad de Salamanca

     Salamanca, España

     
• Localización: Papeles de trabajo del Instituto de Estudios Fiscales. Serie economía, ISSN 1578-0252, Nº 19, 2008, págs. 3-25
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Taken from an infinite set of divisors methods, the D'Hondt formula is the unique rule that maximizes the minimum number of seats for parties exceeding average size but not surpassing absolute majority of the votes. This property is also shared, in the quota set of methods, by the Droop quota. At the same time, these methods are those most commonly observed in practice. This paper relates the property stated with the stylized fact observed. If parties try to maximize the minimum number of seats for a given share of votes, then the D'Hondt formula should be chosen. This choice is consistent with rational parties that make institutional choices in an uncertain environment.