You are a constitutional council ranking individual git commits for ownership allocation.

Compare these two commits. Decide which contributed more lasting value to the project.

Judge substance, not spectacle:
- Prefer correct, lasting design and real bugfixes over churn, formatting, renames, or generated noise.
- Prefer clarity and necessity over sheer line count. A small precise change can beat a large diffuse one.
- Do not favor a side merely because its patch is longer or noisier.
- Weight what the change does for the project, not the contributor's name.

Return ONLY a JSON object: {"winner": "A" or "B", "ratio": "N:M", "explanation": "..."}
The explanation must cite concrete differences in the patches (1-3 sentences).

Side A — contributor: tommy-mor
Side A — commit message:
[aa0b175c] Enforce vote ratio constraints: both sides ≥ 1, max 100.

Zero on either side produces no valid graph edge; ratios above 100
add no meaningful signal. Enforce in the DSL parser, browser POST
handler, and reducer guard. Update browser pool test to use 99:1
instead of 100:0. Add unit and integration regression tests.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Side A — unified diff (full patch):
diff --git a/server/src/api/ui_html.rs b/server/src/api/ui_html.rs
index b79efdb4d52bd445a67f38cbfd61d3507d2b3014..bc8a0130b434cc7880a4bf16eb9237080c4aa383 100644
--- a/server/src/api/ui_html.rs
+++ b/server/src/api/ui_html.rs
@@ -243,11 +243,23 @@ async fn dispatch_ui_action(
             let pool_id = pool.as_deref().and_then(|p| {
                 crate::path_types::ItemId::parse(p.trim()).map(|i| i.normalized_storage())
             });
-            let mut rl = ratio_left.trim().parse::<i32>().unwrap_or(0).max(0);
-            let mut rr = ratio_right.trim().parse::<i32>().unwrap_or(0).max(0);
-            if rl == 0 && rr == 0 {
-                rl = 1;
-                rr = 1;
+            let rl = ratio_left.trim().parse::<i32>().unwrap_or(0).max(0);
+            let rr = ratio_right.trim().parse::<i32>().unwrap_or(0).max(0);
+            if rl == 0 || rr == 0 {
+                return form_js_error(
+                    err_tgt.as_ref(),
+                    "invalid ratio",
+                    "Both ratio sides must be ≥ 1.",
+                )
+                .into_response();
+            }
+            if rl > 100 || rr > 100 {
+                return form_js_error(
+                    err_tgt.as_ref(),
+                    "invalid ratio",
+                    "Ratio sides must be ≤ 100.",
+                )
+                .into_response();
             }
 
             let text = format!(
diff --git a/server/src/dsl.rs b/server/src/dsl.rs
index faa8aac6616bc6ea2b102d08ae999c01a716ef6e..338feacc579a92bed291867cc0f2f62462737462 100644
--- a/server/src/dsl.rs
+++ b/server/src/dsl.rs
@@ -545,9 +545,14 @@ fn parse_block_prefixed_statement(
 
     let ((ratio_left, ratio_right), k) = parse_comparison_at(s, i)
         .ok_or_else(|| DslError::Parse(format!("invalid comparison near: {}", &s[i..])))?;
-    if ratio_left == 0 && ratio_right == 0 {
+    if ratio_left == 0 || ratio_right == 0 {
         return Err(DslError::Parse(
-            "vote ratio 0:0 is invalid; use 1:1 for a tie or omit the vote".to_string(),
+            "vote ratio sides must be ≥ 1; use 1:1 for a tie or omit the vote".to_string(),
+        ));
+    }
+    if ratio_left > 100 || ratio_right > 100 {
+        return Err(DslError::Parse(
+            "vote ratio sides must be ≤ 100".to_string(),
         ));
     }
     i = skip_ws(s, k);
@@ -929,11 +934,50 @@ mod tests {
         let err = parse_full("{tie placeholder}\n~/a 0:0 ~/b").unwrap_err();
         let DslError::Parse(msg) = err;
         assert!(
-            msg.contains("0:0"),
-            "expected 0:0 rejection message, got: {msg}"
+            msg.contains("≥ 1"),
+            "expected zero-side rejection message, got: {msg}"
         );
     }
 
+    #[test]
+    fn parse_vote_rejects_left_zero_ratio() {
+        let err = parse_full("{prefer b}\n~/a 0:5 ~/b").unwrap_err();
+        let DslError::Parse(msg) = err;
+        assert!(
+            msg.contains("≥ 1"),
+            "expected zero-side rejection message, got: {msg}"
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn parse_vote_rejects_right_zero_ratio() {
+        let err = parse_full("{prefer a}\n~/a 5:0 ~/b").unwrap_err();
+        let DslError::Parse(msg) = err;
+        assert!(
+            msg.contains("≥ 1"),
+            "expected zero-side rejection message, got: {msg}"
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn parse_vote_rejects_over_max_ratio() {
+        let err = parse_full("{prefer a strongly}\n~/a 101:1 ~/b").unwrap_err();
+        let DslError::Parse(msg) = err;
+        assert!(
+            msg.contains("≤ 100"),
+            "expected max ratio rejection message, got: {msg}"
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn parse_vote_accepts_max_ratio() {
+        let doc = parse_full("{prefer a}\n~/a 100:1 ~/b").unwrap();
+        assert!(matches!(
+            doc.statements.last(),
+            Some(Stmt::Vote { ratio_left: 100, ratio_right: 1, .. })
+        ));
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn parse_full_interleaves_prose() {
         let input = "hello\n#tag\nworld";
diff --git a/server/src/reducer.rs b/server/src/reducer.rs
index e949e8e092297eedd5c20c131f16ef0121f329b3..6841d35cfc9de2389f340a22b8a45acb335e36c3 100644
--- a/server/src/reducer.rs
+++ b/server/src/reducer.rs
@@ -119,11 +119,11 @@ impl GroupState {
         let (i, j) = if a_idx < b_idx { (a_idx, b_idx) } else { (b_idx, a_idx) };
         self.voted_pairs.insert((i, j));
 
-        let mut w_a = vote.ratio_left.max(0) as f64;
-        let mut w_b = vote.ratio_right.max(0) as f64;
-        if w_a == 0.0 && w_b == 0.0 {
-            w_a = 1.0;
-            w_b = 1.0;
+        let w_a = vote.ratio_left as f64;
+        let w_b = vote.ratio_right as f64;
+        if w_a == 0.0 || w_b == 0.0 {
+            // Zero on either side produces no valid edge; drop the vote.
+            return;
         }
 
         self.add_edge_weight(b_idx, a_idx, w_a);
diff --git a/server/tests/basic.rs b/server/tests/basic.rs
index 9d83e7a97e2c7494790db17c4b5b30c181705026..cc8c1a0d139f3722ba6ecd13dd001c65be835b67 100644
--- a/server/tests/basic.rs
+++ b/server/tests/basic.rs
@@ -175,14 +175,14 @@ fn reducer_clamps_score_bounds() {
     let mut state = ReducerState::default();
     state.apply_event(ingest_event(
         1,
-        "@00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000:test:local/test\n~/t/a {a}\n~/t/b {b}\n{huge}\n~/t/a 1000:1 ~/t/b\n",
+        "@00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000:test:local/test\n~/t/a {a}\n~/t/b {b}\n{huge}\n~/t/a 100:1 ~/t/b\n",
     ));
     state.apply_event(ingest_event(
         2,
-        "@00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000:test:local/test\n{huge}\n~/t/a 1:1000 ~/t/b\n",
+        "@00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000:test:local/test\n{huge}\n~/t/a 1:100 ~/t/b\n",
     ));
 
-    assert_eq!(state.public().ranking_group.idx_to_item.len(), 2); // Should still work, scores clamped internally
+    assert_eq!(state.public().ranking_group.idx_to_item.len(), 2); // Should still work, scores handled internally
 }
 
 // ============================================================================
@@ -513,8 +513,8 @@ fn dsl_parse_rejects_zero_zero_vote_ratio() {
     .expect_err("0:0 vote must be rejected by the parser");
     let slugsocial_server::dsl::DslError::Parse(msg) = err;
     assert!(
-        msg.contains("0:0"),
-        "expected message about invalid 0:0 ratio, got: {msg}"
+        msg.contains("≥ 1"),
+        "expected message about invalid zero ratio, got: {msg}"
     );
 
     let mut state = ReducerState::default();
@@ -533,7 +533,7 @@ fn dsl_parse_rejects_zero_zero_vote_ratio() {
 #[test]
 fn reducer_negative_ratio_clamped_to_zero() {
     let _state = ReducerState::default();
-    // GroupState::apply_vote clamps negatives to 0, then 0:0 -> 1:1
+    // GroupState::apply_vote clamps negatives to 0; when either side is 0 the vote is dropped.
     let mut group = GroupState::new();
     group.apply_vote(slugsocial_server::reducer::VoteData {
         ts: 1,
@@ -546,12 +546,12 @@ fn reducer_negative_ratio_clamped_to_zero() {
         delegate: Some("00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000:test:local/test".to_string()),
         thread_tag: "t".to_string(),
     });
+    // Items are registered, but the zero-clamped vote produces no edges.
     assert_eq!(group.idx_to_item.len(), 2);
-    // Both edges should exist (negatives clamped to 0, then 0:0 -> 1:1)
     let a_idx = group.item_to_idx[&item_id("https://slug.social/~/t/a")];
     let b_idx = group.item_to_idx[&item_id("https://slug.social/~/t/b")];
-    assert!(group.edges.contains_key(&(a_idx, b_idx)));
-    assert!(group.edges.contains_key(&(b_idx, a_idx)));
+    assert!(!group.edges.contains_key(&(a_idx, b_idx)));
+    assert!(!group.edges.contains_key(&(b_idx, a_idx)));
 }
 
 
diff --git a/server/tests/integration_ui.rs b/server/tests/integration_ui.rs
index 23db7b5672418d5bb0ab7529e05ef1f89e59062a..09c5481f039d59efb617a82bafcc432a186e2d30 100644
--- a/server/tests/integration_ui.rs
+++ b/server/tests/integration_ui.rs
@@ -256,3 +256,96 @@ async fn test_sse_public_thread_morph_includes_post_body_not_thread_not_found()
     );
 }
 
+fn ui_vote_compare_post_rpc(
+    room: &str,
+    thread_tag: &str,
+    left: &str,
+    right: &str,
+    ratio_left: &str,
+    ratio_right: &str,
+    explanation: &str,
+) -> String {
+    serde_json::json!({
+        "action": "vote_compare_post",
+        "room": room,
+        "thread_tag": thread_tag,
+        "left_item": left,
+        "right_item": right,
+        "ratio_left": ratio_left,
+        "ratio_right": ratio_right,
+        "explanation": explanation,
+        "next": "/vote",
+    })
+    .to_string()
+}
+
+#[tokio::test]
+async fn test_vote_compare_post_rejects_zero_left_ratio() {
+    let (addr, _tmp, _log, _handle) = create_test_server().await;
+    let client = reqwest::Client::new();
+    let bearer = test_bearer();
+
+    let rpc = ui_vote_compare_post_rpc("public", "test-vote", "~/a", "~/b", "0", "5", "prefer b");
+    let resp = client
+        .post(format!("http://{addr}/ui"))
+        .header("Authorization", format!("Bearer {bearer}"))
+        .form(&[("__rpc__", rpc.as_str())])
+        .send()
+        .await
+        .unwrap();
+
+    assert_eq!(resp.status(), reqwest::StatusCode::OK);
+    let js = resp.text().await.unwrap();
+    assert!(
+        js.contains("invalid ratio") || js.contains("≥ 1"),
+        "expected zero-ratio rejection, got: {js}"
+    );
+}
+
+#[tokio::test]
+async fn test_vote_compare_post_rejects_zero_right_ratio() {
+    let (addr, _tmp, _log, _handle) = create_test_server().await;
+    let client = reqwest::Client::new();
+    let bearer = test_bearer();
+
+    let rpc = ui_vote_compare_post_rpc("public", "test-vote", "~/a", "~/b", "5", "0", "prefer a");
+    let resp = client
+        .post(format!("http://{addr}/ui"))
+        .header("Authorization", format!("Bearer {bearer}"))
+        .form(&[("__rpc__", rpc.as_str())])
+        .send()
+        .await
+        .unwrap();
+
+    assert_eq!(resp.status(), reqwest::StatusCode::OK);
+    let js = resp.text().await.unwrap();
+    assert!(
+        js.contains("invalid ratio") || js.contains("≥ 1"),
+        "expected zero-ratio rejection, got: {js}"
+    );
+}
+
+#[tokio::test]
+async fn test_vote_compare_post_rejects_over_max_ratio() {
+    let (addr, _tmp, _log, _handle) = create_test_server().await;
+    let client = reqwest::Client::new();
+    let bearer = test_bearer();
+
+    let rpc =
+        ui_vote_compare_post_rpc("public", "test-vote", "~/a", "~/b", "101", "1", "prefer a");
+    let resp = client
+        .post(format!("http://{addr}/ui"))
+        .header("Authorization", format!("Bearer {bearer}"))
+        .form(&[("__rpc__", rpc.as_str())])
+        .send()
+        .await
+        .unwrap();
+
+    assert_eq!(resp.status(), reqwest::StatusCode::OK);
+    let js = resp.text().await.unwrap();
+    assert!(
+        js.contains("invalid ratio") || js.contains("≤ 100"),
+        "expected over-max ratio rejection, got: {js}"
+    );
+}
+
diff --git a/test/browser_vote_pool.clj b/test/browser_vote_pool.clj
index 23d0bd80b02bd8b1b48853454bed02793296550e..738608801027d1e662660b5d6c830b4ccd07c434 100644
--- a/test/browser_vote_pool.clj
+++ b/test/browser_vote_pool.clj
@@ -38,8 +38,8 @@
 ;; Set the hidden ratio inputs so the alphabetically-earlier item wins.
 (defn- set-ratio! [pg left-text right-text]
   (let [[rl rr] (if (neg? (compare (leaf left-text) (leaf right-text)))
-                  [100 0]   ; left is earlier → prefer left
-                  [0 100])] ; right is earlier → prefer right
+                  [99 1]   ; left is earlier → prefer left
+                  [1 99])] ; right is earlier → prefer right
     (page/evaluate pg (str "document.getElementById('vote-ratio-left').value='" rl "'"))
     (page/evaluate pg (str "document.getElementById('vote-ratio-right').value='" rr "'"))))
 


Side B — contributor: tommy-mor
Side B — commit message:
[81de487b] Fix zero-ratio guard in reducer to drop before registering items or pair.

Previously the early-return for zero-weight votes happened after
ensure_item and voted_pairs.insert, leaving ghost items in the index
and the pair incorrectly marked as voted. Move the check to before
any side effects.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>

Side B — unified diff (full patch):
diff --git a/server/src/reducer.rs b/server/src/reducer.rs
index 6841d35cfc9de2389f340a22b8a45acb335e36c3..0e36979abe0f051493038ff7e652efc7f7a0ac80 100644
--- a/server/src/reducer.rs
+++ b/server/src/reducer.rs
@@ -112,6 +112,10 @@ impl GroupState {
         if vote.ratio_right < 0 {
             vote.ratio_right = 0;
         }
+        if vote.ratio_left == 0 || vote.ratio_right == 0 {
+            // Zero on either side produces no valid edge; drop before registering items or pair.
+            return;
+        }
 
         let a_idx = self.ensure_item(&vote.a);
         let b_idx = self.ensure_item(&vote.b);
@@ -121,10 +125,6 @@ impl GroupState {
 
         let w_a = vote.ratio_left as f64;
         let w_b = vote.ratio_right as f64;
-        if w_a == 0.0 || w_b == 0.0 {
-            // Zero on either side produces no valid edge; drop the vote.
-            return;
-        }
 
         self.add_edge_weight(b_idx, a_idx, w_a);
         self.add_edge_weight(a_idx, b_idx, w_b);
diff --git a/server/tests/basic.rs b/server/tests/basic.rs
index cc8c1a0d139f3722ba6ecd13dd001c65be835b67..08159f4a7f0850fd165817a4a1af4f31ced2ad76 100644
--- a/server/tests/basic.rs
+++ b/server/tests/basic.rs
@@ -546,12 +546,10 @@ fn reducer_negative_ratio_clamped_to_zero() {
         delegate: Some("00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000:test:local/test".to_string()),
         thread_tag: "t".to_string(),
     });
-    // Items are registered, but the zero-clamped vote produces no edges.
-    assert_eq!(group.idx_to_item.len(), 2);
-    let a_idx = group.item_to_idx[&item_id("https://slug.social/~/t/a")];
-    let b_idx = group.item_to_idx[&item_id("https://slug.social/~/t/b")];
-    assert!(!group.edges.contains_key(&(a_idx, b_idx)));
-    assert!(!group.edges.contains_key(&(b_idx, a_idx)));
+    // Nothing registered: zero-clamped vote is dropped before ensure_item.
+    assert!(group.idx_to_item.is_empty());
+    assert!(group.edges.is_empty());
+    assert!(group.voted_pairs.is_empty());
 }