Ways of voting
Which way of voting for which question? Each method has its strengths: here is how they work, what sets them apart, and how to choose.
What is different here
On many online voting sites, you have to trust the team. Here, you can check.
A truly secret vote
Your choice is scrambled (encrypted) in your browser before it is sent: even the site team cannot read it.
Results anyone can check
Every vote leaves a public trace that cannot be altered in secret. You get a tracking code, and the calculations are published.
The right way to vote for each question
Yes or no, grades, several choices, ranking, shared budget: the method is chosen to fit the stakes, not the other way round.
From the neighbourhood to the country
Each decision is tied to an area. The result of declared residents is shown separately.
Debates that bring people together
The arguments that rise are those that different camps find useful, not just the most popular. The formula is published.
No AI decides for you
No generative AI in the process. Calculations are published and recomputable; groupings of ideas are validated by a person.
Which way of voting for which stakes?
Find your situation, then click: the guide takes you to the right method.
Choose between several options
Share out money
Compare at a glance
| Way of voting | You… | Secret? | Effort | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| For / Against / Abstain | Answer yes, no or no opinion | 🔒 Secret | ★☆☆ | Simple decisions, rules |
| Majority judgment (grades) | Grade each option | 🔒 Secret | ★★★ | Deciding between several options |
| Approval (several choices) | Tick everything you accept | 🔒 Secret | ★☆☆ | Keeping several projects or dates |
| Ranking (Condorcet method) | Rank the options | 🔒 Secret | ★★★ | Many options, a consensus choice |
| Equal-shares budget | Approve projects, the budget is shared | 👁️ Public | ★☆☆ | Participatory budgets |
| Quadratic vote (squared votes) | Spread your votes (the next costs more) | 👁️ Public | ★★☆ | Expressing strength of preference |
| Continuous funding | Support over time | 👁️ Public | ★☆☆ | Requests that arrive at any time |
| Quick opinion | Answer in one click | 🔒 Secret | ★☆☆ | Testing the ground |
| Open consultation | Write your ideas | No vote | ★★☆ | Gathering ideas |
| Delegating your voice | Entrust your voice, revocable | No vote | ★☆☆ | When you have no time |
Each way of voting, in detail
For / Against / Abstain
🔒 Secret ★☆☆
You pick one answer to a proposal: for, against, or no opinion. One click is enough.
Good to know : Adopted if enough people vote (quorum) and the share of “for” among the opinions expressed reaches the threshold. Says nothing about how strongly people feel.
↑ Back to the guideMajority judgment (grades)
🔒 Secret ★★★
You grade each option from “To reject” to “Excellent” (6 grades). The option with the best median grade wins.
Good to know : Longer to fill in, but an option that splits opinion strongly is at a disadvantage. The result shows the full profile of grades.
↑ Back to the guideApproval (several choices)
🔒 Secret ★☆☆
You tick every option you accept, with no limit. Those with the most ticks come first.
Good to know : Simple and quick. Does not tell “I love it” from “I accept it”.
↑ Back to the guideRanking (Condorcet method)
🔒 Secret ★★★
You rank the options from favourite to least liked. The option that beats each of the others head to head wins.
Good to know : Gives the most representative result when there are many options. Sometimes none beats all the others: the cycle is then shown. More effort to vote.
↑ Back to the guideEqual-shares budget
👁️ Public ★☆☆
Each member approves the projects they support, with no limit. The budget is split into equal shares: a project is funded when its supporters can together pay its cost.
Good to know : A majority cannot swallow the whole budget. This vote is not secret (the calculation needs to know who supports what) but is never published one by one.
↑ Back to the guideQuadratic vote (squared votes)
👁️ Public ★★☆
You have a stock of votes to spread. Each extra vote on the same project costs more and more: 3 votes cost 9, 5 votes cost 25.
Good to know : Encourages spreading support according to real intensity. Open vote, deliberately not encrypted.
↑ Back to the guideContinuous funding
👁️ Public ★☆☆
No deadline: your support builds up day after day. The higher the amount requested, the more support is needed to accept it.
Good to know : Public, signed vote. You can update your support at any time.
↑ Back to the guideQuick opinion
🔒 Secret ★☆☆
One question, one answer in a click, open for 7 days. The vote is secret and verifiable.
Good to know : It is a consultative opinion, not a decision: it takes the pulse.
↑ Back to the guideOpen consultation
No vote ★★☆
An open question: everyone writes their ideas in a few words. A person groups them into themes, with a published calculation, then the map of ideas is published.
Good to know : No vote: we listen first. During collection, everyone only sees their own ideas, to avoid copying.
↑ Back to the guideDelegating your voice
No vote ★☆☆
You entrust your voice to a trusted person, on a topic. You can take it back whenever you like.
Good to know : The vote of a person carrying other people’s voices is public, and their weight is capped. No delegation in groups (one person, one voice).
↑ Back to the guideWhat we do not claim (yet)
- The site is in a test phase: no real decision is made here for now.
- The 5 pieces of the key that allows counting the votes are still in the same place: we are looking for independent trusted people to hold them.
- Three ways of voting (equal-shares budget, quadratic vote, continuous funding) are deliberately not secret: the calculation needs to know who supports what. This is written on each page concerned.
- Each person declares their municipality: it is not verified. So we say “declared residents”.
🧪 Try a real encrypted vote, just for pretend 🔍 Check the votes