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A comment on Australia’s new mass surveillance mandate. Parent comment

Re:Australia’s new mass surveillance mandate by caf on Wednesday September 08, 2021 @01:34AM (#28453428)
A donkey vote isn't a blank ballot.

It's a ballot that's just been numbered unthinkingly from top to bottom.

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Re:Australia’s new mass surveillance mandate by tacocataco on Wednesday September 08, 2021 @09:54AM (#28456988)
Are they counted as votes? That would mean the person at the top of the ballot have an advantage because of these donkey votes.
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Re:Australia’s new mass surveillance mandate by caf on Wednesday September 08, 2021 @07:22PM (#28464281)
Yes, they are counted, because it is a perfectly valid vote.

This does indeed advantage the candidate who draws the top spot on the ballot (the positions are randomly assigned). In a preferential system it advantages the candidate in the final two that drew the higher position - it seems to be worth about 0.7% ( https://www.crikey.com.au/2010/08/02/whats-the-donkey-worth-... ).

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