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Simple English definitions for legal terms
excess vote
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A quick definition of excess vote:
An excess vote is a vote that counts towards a winning candidate beyond what is needed to win. For example, if a candidate needs 100 votes to win and gets 150, then 50 votes are excess votes. These excess votes are not needed to secure the candidate's victory. In contrast, an effective vote is a vote that counts towards a winning candidate to the extent needed to win. It is important to understand the difference between excess and effective votes in elections.
A more thorough explanation:
An excess vote is a vote that counts towards a winning candidate beyond the extent needed to win. For example, if a candidate needs 100 votes to win and gets 150, then 50 votes are excess votes. These votes are not necessary for the candidate to win, but they still count towards their total.
Excess votes can occur in elections where voters are allowed to vote for multiple candidates, and the candidates with the most votes win. In this case, a voter may cast a vote for a candidate who is already likely to win, resulting in an excess vote for that candidate.
Excess votes are different from effective votes, which are votes that count towards a winning candidate to the extent needed to win.
For example, if a candidate needs 100 votes to win and gets exactly 100 votes, then all 100 votes are effective votes. If the candidate gets 150 votes, then 50 votes are excess votes and 100 votes are effective votes.
Overall, excess votes do not affect the outcome of an election, but they can indicate the level of support for a winning candidate beyond what was necessary for them to win.