Drawing straws is a selection method, or a form of
sortition, that is used by a group to choose one member of the group to perform a task after none has volunteered for it. The same practice can be used also to choose one of several volunteers, should an agreement not be reached. It is a form of the practice of drawing lots, only using straws instead.
Process
The group leader takes a number of straws (or similarly long cylindrical objects) and ensures that one of them is physically shorter than the others. The leader then grabs all of the straws in their fist, such that all of them appear to be of the same length.
The group leader offers the clenched fist to the group. Each member of the group draws a straw from the fist of the group leader. At the end of the offering, the group member who has drawn the shortest straw is the one who must perform the task.
This practice is epitomized in the
cliché
A cliché ( or ) is an element of an artistic work, saying, or idea that has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even to the point of being weird or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was consi ...
"drawing the short straw"—to mean being randomly, unluckily, or unfairly selected to perform a task, at the risk of suffering a penalty.
Politics
United Kingdom
In the
United Kingdom, if a local or national election has resulted in a
tie
Tie has two principal meanings:
* Tie (draw), a finish to a competition with identical results, particularly sports
* Necktie, a long piece of cloth worn around the neck or shoulders
Tie or TIE may also refer to:
Engineering and technology
* Ti ...
in which candidates receive exactly the same number of votes after three recounts, the winner must be decided by random selection.
On 5 May 2017, Local election candidates in Northumberland drew straws to decide the winner in South Blythe Ward. Liberal Democrat candidate Lesley Rickerby was declared the winner, denying Conservatives overall control of Northumberland County Council.
United States
On 20 November 2015, a Mississippi state election was settled by drawing straws after both candidates received 4,589 votes. This resulted in
Blaine Eaton being re-elected to the
Mississippi House of Representatives
The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected fo ...
.
See also
*
Sortition
*
The Nose Game
References
{{reflist
Sampling (statistics)
Games of chance