Hong Kong political parties started to adopt this strategy after 2000 to overcome the effect of the largest remainder system with Hare quota combined with small constituencies (5- to 8-member in 2008).
The other method, party designated transfer, only works for systems that allow group voting.
Evidence from Ireland[2] indicates that this form of vote management has been attempted on a number of occasions.
For example, in the 2003 elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, a vote management strategy by Sinn Féin in West Belfast intended to replace a Social Democratic and Labour Party member with a Sinn Féin member led instead to the election of a member of the Democratic Unionist Party, a party extremely hostile to Sinn Féin.
The published lists that show the designated transfers can be long and complicated and can effectively disguise who an "above the line" vote is likely to end electing.