Method comparison

Quadratic voting vs one-person-one-vote

One-person-one-vote protects equal formal participation. Quadratic voting starts from equal voice budgets, then lets participants spend more where they care more.

Start a decisionSee the mechanism

Nicolas mechanism signals

These concepts follow the mathematical contract used by the app.

Convex cost

cost = c * sum a_ij^2

Voice budget

sum a_ij^2 <= B

Outcome rule

shifted softmax over support

What one-person-one-vote reveals

One-person-one-vote is simple, legible, and central to many formal democratic contexts. It answers whether more participants support one option than another.

It does not directly reveal whether support is mild, intense, or concentrated among people most affected by the outcome.

What quadratic voting reveals

Quadratic voting begins with equal voice budgets for a decision. Participants then allocate intensity across alternatives, and stronger positions spend more of that budget.

Nicolas keeps the resulting support, opposition, costs, delegation, and outcome probabilities visible.

How to choose

Use one-person-one-vote when formal equality, simplicity, and majority legitimacy are the main requirements.

Use Nicolas when the group still wants equal starting budgets but needs to measure how strongly people care.

Use cases

Where this decision model helps

One-person-one-vote fit

Formal choices where a binary or majority result is the right public standard.

Quadratic voting fit

Consultation, prioritization, and governance signals where intensity matters.

Nicolas fit

Structured decisions needing finite voice credits and inspectable results.

FAQ

Does quadratic voting violate equality?

Nicolas gives participants equal starting voice budgets for a decision. It differs by letting people spend that budget according to preference intensity.

Does Nicolas run statutory elections?

No. Nicolas is not statutory election software. It is a decision tool for groups that need intensity-aware signals.

Where is one-person-one-vote enough?

It is enough when the group only needs a simple count or formal majority result and does not need to measure strength of preference.

Keep reading

Continue with adjacent concepts and practical Nicolas workflows.

Collective decision-making softwareSee how Nicolas supports decisions beyond majority rule.Participatory governanceExplore governance contexts where intensity-aware signals help.