Editing Cumulative voting (section)

=== Permissible splits ===
Cumulative voting systems differ both in the ways voters mark their selections and in the degree to which voters are permitted to split their votes.

==== Equal-and-even ====
Possibly the simplest ballot is called '''satisfaction approval voting''' or the '''equal-and-even''' method. On this ballot, a voter simply marks all candidates they approve of, as in [[approval voting]], and their vote is automatically distributed evenly among those preferred candidates. Voters are unable to specify a differing level of support for a more preferred candidate, giving them less flexibility but simplifying ballot completion.

==== Dot voting ====
A more common and slightly more complex cumulative voting system is called '''dot voting'''<ref>{{cite web | url=http://my.safaribooksonline.com/0321268776/ch15lev1sec10 | title=Redirect}}</ref> or '''multi-voting'''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bens |first=Ingrid |title=Facilitating with Ease! |publisher=Jossey-Bass |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7879-7729-0 |page=159}}</ref> Under this method, voters are given an explicit number of points, which they can distribute among one or more candidates on the ballot. Typically, this is done by having a voter make one mark for each point they wish to assign to the desired candidate. In dot-voting participants vote on their chosen options using  a limited number of stickers or marks with pens — dot stickers being the most common. This sticker voting approach is a form of cumulative voting. Dot-voting is now widely used for making quick collaborative decisions by teams adopting agile and lean methodologies. For example, it is one of the methods endorsed by the 18F digital services agency of the United States' General Services Administration, and is part of the Design Sprint methodology.

Generally, the number of points given to each voter is equal to the number of winning candidates (seats to be filled), which is typically a holdover after a transition from [[block plurality voting]].

==== Fractional voting ====
A similar method is to have the voter write in a desired number of points next to each candidate. Then, the scores on the ballot are divided by the total number of points the voter has assigned, to make sure the allocation adds up to 100%. The need to [[Unit vector|normalize]] votes complicates counting by hand, but simplifies the process of voting and gives each voter maximum flexibility.