What describes a tie vote in parliamentary procedure?

• A. An equal number of affirmative and negative votes
• B. A majority vote is achieved
• C. The chair automatically breaks ties
• D. The motion is postponed

Answer: (A)

A tie vote means the number of yes votes equals the number of no votes. In parliamentary procedure, most motions need a majority to pass, so when the vote is tied, the motion does not carry unless the organization has a rule allowing the chair to break ties. The statement about the chair automatically breaking ties isn’t universally true, and postponing the motion describes a different action. So the defining description is simply an equal number of affirmative and negative votes.