LSAT 134 | Section 2 | Logical Reasoning: Q19

LR Question 19 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Educator: It has been argued that our professional organization should …

QUESTION TYPE: Principle – Justify

CONCLUSION: The organization shouldn’t decide important issues by direct vote.

REASONING: A member’s vote has more influence when electing officers than when voting directly on individual issues.

ANALYSIS: The educator gives us one reason why representative voting is better than direct voting.

That reason is a member’s vote carries more influence in officer elections than in direct votes on individual issues.

But why does that matter? It’s usually helpful to put numbers to situations.

Imagine one voting system gives your vote a 1-in-100 chance of making a difference, while another gives it a 1-in-10,000 chance. The educator is assuming the first system is better because it gives each person’s vote more power.

So the idea is that the better decision-making system is the one that gives each member more influence over the organization’s decision.

___________

1. The argument never suggests that some members’ votes count more than others. It compares direct voting to electing officers, not unequal voting power between members.
2. The educator never argues that one system produces better outcomes for the organization. The only thing discussed is how much influence each member’s vote has.
3. If you chose this, you might’ve assumed that officers can dedicate themselves better to decision-making and members cannot, and therefore the former is better. But nothing in the stimulus says officers are better informed or spend more time studying the issues. This introduces a completely new reason.
4. Irrelevant. This discusses whether officers agree with the majority, which isn’t what we care about.
5. CORRECT. The educator argues that electing officers gives each member more influence than direct voting. If organizations should maximize each member’s influence, then representative voting is the better system.