Ballot

  • Date 2022-07-18

General Definition: The judge’s written decision determining the winners of a debate and “Speaker Points” for each debater.

  • Public Forum:Commonly used. In PF, a judge’s ballot includes a “Reason for Decision”, written feedback to debaters, and speaker points typically ranging from 25 to 30 based on each debater’s delivery.
  • World Schools Debate:Commonly used. In WSD, a judge’s ballot is divided into three categories: content, style, and strategy. Each speech is given a score using these three areas. Constructives, rebuttals, and summaries can receive a score between 60 and 80 points, while replies can receive between 30 and 40 points. All speakers scores on each team are added together and the team with the most points is declared the winner. A judge’s ballot will also typically include written feedback to debaters. See also “Content”, “Style”, and “Strategy”.
  • British Parliamentary:Commonly used. In BP, judges confer with each other and arrive at a consensus or split decision on team rankings from 1st to 4th place. The chair determines speaker scores, with possible consultation from their panelists. The effective speaker score range is from 65-90, with 75 being the average speech expected at that particular tournament. Scores below 65 are reserved for equity violations and should be justified to the OrgCom; likewise scores above 85 are reserved for exceptional speeches and also should be justified to the OrgCom.
  • Canadian National Debate Format: Commonly used. In CNDF, a judge’s ballot has five categories: Organization/Structure, Evidence/Analysis, Rebuttal/ Clash, Delivery/Etiquette, and Questioning/Responding. The effective speaker score range is from 75-95, with 83-87 being average. Scores <75 are rare and reserved for exceptional poor speeches (due to unfamiliarity with the style, little to no speech content, or deliberate equity violations), and requires permission from the OrgCom; likewise scores above 95 are virtually never given, reserved for a speech that was “perfect and the best in Canada”, and require permission from the OrgCom.