Where would you place your platform?
When voters choose the nearer of two positions, location determines vote share.
Inside this model
One hundred and one voters sit at integer positions 0–100 and choose the nearest of two platforms; exact ties split equally. The plot shows your vote share for every possible platform holding the rival fixed.
Out in the world
A practical use
See why two competitors may cluster near the middle of a one-issue spectrum.
A useful lens. Not a universal law.
- Actual voting has many dimensions, turnout differences, identity and more than two candidates.
Associated thinkers
Further reading
Explore the original research or the teaching reference behind this experiment.
Anthony Downs — An Economic Theory of Democracy ↗