The theory of the median voter may not work if:
I. voters do not vote.
II. voters do not vote for the policy closest to their own positions.
III. there are multiple dimensions over which the voting occurs.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

All three statements are correct in stating the cases where the theory of the median voter may not work. If voters do not vote, then the median voter has no impact on the election outcome. If voters do not vote for the policy closest to their positions, then the median voter may not necessarily be in the middle of the policy spectrum, which is the assumption of the theory. Multiple dimensions of voting imply that a single median voter cannot exist because it is challenging to find a position that represents the middle on multiple dimensions.

The Theory of the Median Voter May Not Work If