How can a candidate in a political race win the majority of votes yet lose the election? How can members of a community comprise almost half the electorate yet have no representation in the legislature? How does the shape of a voting district affect whom its inhabitants elect? How much power does the President of the United States have? How can two competing candidates interpret the same statistic as being in their favor? 

In this class, we will look at the mathematics behind these and related questions that have bearing on democracy. Some of the topics we will examine are voting methods, apportionment of legislative seats, sizes of legislatures, proportional representation, quantification of power, mathematical tools for detecting gerrymandering, regulation of cryptography and repercussions on privacy, and data interpretation. We will also study the larger context for these topics through an overview of the fields of social choice and game theory which are concerned with the quantification and analysis of notions such as fairness and conflict. 

The goal of this class is to illustrate the importance of rigorous reasoning in various political processes while providing an introduction to some fascinating mathematics.  After this class, you should be aware of the many ways mathematics plays a role in politics and should understand that effective participation in the democratic process requires quantitative literacy and a certain amount of mathematical prowess. You will learn that understanding the mathematics behind various socio-economic and political forces is often necessary for making informed, rational decisions about the world around you and for affecting meaningful change.

Class meetings will take on different formats and will include lectures, discussions, and group work. Assignments will also be varied, consisting of problem sets and readings. The prerequisite is solid command of algebra. No background in political science is required.