The ratio of yes to no votes in an election was 3 to 2. How many no votes were cast if there were 1170 yes votes?

Question

 The ratio of yes to no votes in an election was 3 to 2. How many no votes were cast if there were 1170 yes votes?

Answer 1

Hi there,

We can use equivalent ratios to answer this problem.

The ratio of yes to no votes in fractional form would be:

3 yes = 1170 yes

2 no x no

Because 390 times 3 is 1170, we can multiply both the numerator and denominator by 390 to find the value of x:

3 • 390 = 1170

2 • 390 x

x = 780

780 no votes were cast.