By Chris Cordera

For me the voting process for an at-large election was somewhat obscure and made more so with multiple candidates for an open seat. What follows is a brief summary and examples that hopefully will help others.

Our Yountville town council members serve at-large, which means that they represent and serve the entire town as opposed to separately representing specific areas/neighborhoods within the town. As a result, during the election cycle the open council seats are exactly the same with respect to duties and authority. The exception is the mayor whom we elect separately.

In the upcoming November election, we have two open council seats and six candidates running for them.

The winners of those seats will be determined by the two candidates that receive the greatest number of votes.

As a result, all council candidates are competing against each other so implicitly, four candidates will lose and two will win.

Yountville residents who are registered voters receive ballots that apply as follows:

Residents may vote for up to two candidates, one for each open seat.
They cannot “stack” their votes meaning they cannot apply two votes to a single candidate; they must select a different candidate for each seat.
Block/Full Slate Voting is the typical method and describes the process where a voter selects candidates for all open seats.
Bullet/Single-Shot Voting implies only voting for a single candidate while leaving the rest of the ballot blank. This approach attempts to maximizes the chances of a specific candidate by avoiding the possibility that the additional votes the voter casts might end up in direct competition. (While the term “splitting the ballot” is often used to describe bullet voting, it can be misleading as it traditionally refers to a voter choosing candidates from different political parties on the same ballot.)

The potential impact

Block voting
- Maximizes the chances of an entire slate/party winning
- A specific, first-choice candidate may be placed in greater competition.
Bullet voting
- Maximizes the chances of one specific candidate winning
- Withholds votes from other candidates, potentially reducing the voter’s impact on the overall election outcome

Here are hypothetical scenarios to illustrate possible outcomes depending on voting strategy and distribution results.

Scenario 1

You cast both of your ballots for your first and secondary choice candidates.
Three candidates accumulate the most votes.
Two are your first and secondary choices.
One candidate has by far the most votes but is neither of your choices.
Your two candidates are now in direct competition for the remaining seat but only one can win.
The totals for your secondary choice candidate include your vote, which may help them defeat your first-choice candidate.

Scenario 2

Both of your ballot choices win

Scenario 1 Considerations

If strongly favoring their first-choice candidate, some may wish to optimize their chances by casting a single vote.
However, if their first-choice candidate is not likely to win, they may not want to sacrifice their second vote.
Casting two votes works for someone comfortable with either of their candidates winning or desires to influence the outcome of both seats.

Scenario 2 Considerations

You’ve hit the voter jackpot so head to Vegas!

In the last election it appears Yountville residents used both voting strategies with a preference for voting for all open seats. In the Nov. 4, 2024 election where two seats were open, residents submitting two votes represented 72% of the ballots vs 28% submitting a single vote. (Link below)

Ultimately, the strategy chosen is a personal decision each voter is free to make.

According to Our World in Data, just over one-third of countries (39%) hold elections that meet the criteria to be considered genuinely free and fair. Beyond voting strategies, issues of the day and candidate preferences, what is most important is that on Nov. 3 we all take advantage of our state guaranteed right and federally granted privilege to vote for our candidates of choice.

Calculations from the 2024 Election:
Total valid ballots submitted: 1,465
Total seats open: 2
Total votes available to cast: 2 x 1,465 = 2,930
Total votes cast for all candidates: 2117
Total votes not cast: 2,930 – 2117 = 813
% votes not cast 813/2930 =. 2775