A computer simulator for proportional representation systems

Computational research can make a contribution to practical politics. In th e field of elections, there always has been an attempt to find the "ideal v oting system" in terms of perfect fair representation of majorities and min orities in representative bodies. The project described in this article dea ls with the design and implementation of a proportional representation (PR) vote-tallying structural system (VTSS). The main purpose of this program i s to carry out the vote-counting process within a multi-post election. The VTSS can be described as a parameter-based multialgorithm system. It includ es the single transferable vote, highest average, and greatest remainder vo ting methods. The last two receive parameters to particularize their execut ion, emulating well-known PR list systems. Although it was not the main obj ective, the VTSS has proven to be effective in analyzing and designing PR e lectoral systems.