AP MicroeconomicsGame Theory & Information
Median Voter Theorem
The median voter theorem says that under majority rule with single-peaked preferences, the outcome chosen matches the preference of the median voter.
When voters' preferences over a one-dimensional issue (like a budget size) are single-peaked, the option most preferred by the median voter beats every alternative in pairwise majority voting. This predicts that two competing candidates converge toward the center to capture that pivotal voter, a key result in public choice popularized by Anthony Downs. It breaks down when preferences are multi-peaked or the issue space is multidimensional.