What is the purpose of the score percentage?

For each scorecard, a score percentage is calculated for each legislator to measure the level of agreement between the scorecard creator's positions and the legislator's votes. A score of 100% represents perfect agreement across all votes in that scorecard.

What is the purpose of weighted scores?

Weighted scores allow scorecard creators to give more importance to certain votes. By default, each vote is given a weight of 1, meaning legislators receive 1 point if their vote aligns with the scorecard creator's position. However, if a scorecard creator assigns a weight of 2 to a particular vote, legislators would receive 2 points for an aligned vote. Note: In the example table for the question below, the third row has a weight of 2, and the other rows have the default weight of 1.

How are weighted scores used to calculate the score percentage?

For each scorecard, the score percentage for each legislator is calculated by adding the total points they earned, dividing that by the total possible points, and then multiplying the result by 100. For example, the total points earned by the legislator in the example below are 4.5 (e.g., 1+0+2+0.5+1=4.5), and the total possible points are 6 (e.g., 1+1+2+1+1=6), so the score percentage would be 75% (e.g., 4.5/6=0.75).

Why are votes of legislators highlighted in red, green, or gray?

As shown in the example above, if a legislator's vote is aligned with the scorecard creator's position, the vote is highlighted in green. If the vote is misaligned, it is highlighted in red. If the scorecard creator took a neutral position on a particular vote, the legislator's vote would be highlighted in gray. If a legislator did not vote, "Not Voting" would be highlighted in gray.

Why do legislators receive half of the possible points when not voting?

There are several different ways for a scorecard systems to handle situations of a legislator not voting. We don't use the approach of simply ignoring missed votes because that method benefits legislators who skip the hard votes and only vote on the easy ones. The method we use is to award half the possible points when not voting because this encourages legislators to fulfill their voting responsibilities while also accounting for how not voting is better than a misaligned vote and worse than an aligned vote.

What is the purpose of including votes where a scorecard creator takes a neutral position?

Votes where the scorecard creator takes a neutral position are ignored in score calculations, and these neutral positions could simply be excluded from the scorecard. However, including them can demonstrate completeness in the votes considered and allow viewers to see where the creator has chosen not to take a strong stance.

How are the letter grades determined?

The letter grade given to each legislator for a particular scorecard is determined by the score percentage using the following scale. For example, a score percentage of 75% would be a "C".

How do I create a scorecard?

The steps to create a scorecard are detailed on the home page, but here is a quick overview: register, log in, and then specify your positions and the weights for the votes you want included in your scorecard.

How can I share my scorecard with others?

Initially, your scorecard is set to private, so only you can see it. Once you set the status to public, you can share it with others by providing a link or embedding it on your website.

What is the purpose of the passcode feature?

The passcode feature allows others to review your scorecard before it is made public. You can set the scorecard's status to "passcode" and provide the reviewers with the passcode.

What are the differences between free and paid accounts?

The pricing page provides detailed information about the differences between free and paid accounts.