How can the same votes give different rule outcomes?

A candidate can receive more votes than any rival without receiving more than half of all votes. That is why a plurality rule and a majority rule can give different conclusions from the same count. The illustrated plurality rule requires a unique largest tally; a majority requires strictly more than half of the valid votes.

In the fictional one-seat election, A receives four votes, B three and C two. There are nine valid one-choice ballots. A has more than either rival and therefore meets the displayed plurality rule.

A majority requires at least five of those nine votes. A's four fall short, so none of the candidates has a majority. The votes have not changed: the condition applied to them has. Reporting only that A has the most votes would leave out this important distinction.

Reliable counting and the chosen rule both matter. Applying a rule correctly cannot repair an unreliable tally. A tied or insufficient tally also needs a stated further procedure rather than an invented winner. This example supplies no runoff or tiebreak; its purpose is to show how a count acquires meaning through a declared decision rule.