stemronde

Stemronde, literally “vote round” in Dutch, is a term used to describe a stage in a decision-making process during which participants cast ballots to determine an outcome. The concept is commonly applied in elections, referendums, or internal organizational votes and is used to structure the counting and certification of votes.

In many electoral systems, more than one stemronde may be held. If no candidate or option achieves the required threshold in an initial round—such as a simple majority or another specified quota—additional stemrondes are conducted. The precise rules, including thresholds, the number of permissible rounds, and whether ballots are reused or redistributed, vary by jurisdiction and context.

In organizational settings, stemrondes are used for selecting leaders or deciding contested issues within bodies such as student associations, unions, municipal councils, or company boards. In these contexts, the term emphasizes the procedural aspect of repeatedly voting until a clear winner or consensus emerges.

Etymology: stemronde combines stem (vote) and ronde (round) in Dutch. The concept aligns with terms like runoff elections or successive rounds of voting in other languages, though the exact procedures differ across systems.

See also: Elections, Runoff, Referendum, Ballot, Voting theory.