Sir – Professor Elliott writes (April 14) that he understands AV. I wish I had the same confidence. He cites two examples, Oxford East and Oxford West and Abingdon, where he claims that the second preferences of the runners-up in the last General Election might have produced a different result.
That is indeed likely, but as I understand it, the second preferences of runners up would not be counted until all the other candidates had been eliminated and their second or even third choices distributed, without any candidate achieving the 50 per cent backing.
It seems unlikely that the second preferences of those who voted for the runners-up in the two constituencies, whether Labour or Conservative, if they came to be counted at all, would be cast for their principal opponents.
Probably they would go to a candidate who had already been eliminated. In that case, would they be counted? If they were not counted, they would not affect the outcome at all, although in theory it could leave no candidate with the required 50 per cent.
I may have misunderstood the system but it would not seem to be a satisfactory outcome.
John Graham, Shipton-under-Wychwood
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