Presenters: Todd Donovan, Professor of Political Science, Western Washington University; Pedro Hernandez and Deb Otis, FairVote There are many different voting systems. Arlington uses first-past-the-post primaries (or caucuses) followed by an FPTP general election, with office holders elected at-large. Most are familiar with election by districts. This presentation will address some of the voting systems that we may be less familiar with. What are the advantages and disadvantages of the major alternative voting systems? What is each system good at and what is it not so good at? Are particular systems a better fit for communities with certain characteristics? Does size (geographic or population) matter? How about the degree of heterogeneity vs. homogeneity of the population? Arlington has a population of approximately 230,000 and is very compact, encompassing only 26 square miles. Should those characteristics influence what sort of voting models we should be considering? How should we factor in the degree and distribution of racial/ethnic diversity? Viewpoint diversity?