The residents of a city voted on whether to raise property taxes. The ratio of yes votes to no votes was 5 to 6. If there were six thousand 6,985 total votes , how many no votes were there?
Let x be the number of yes votes and y be the number of no votes.
From the information given, we can create the following equation:
x/y = 5/6
We are also given that the total number of votes is 6,985:
x + y = 6,985
Solving the first equation for x, we get:
x = 5y/6
Substitute this into the second equation:
5y/6 + y = 6,985
Multiplying by 6 to clear the fraction:
5y + 6y = 41,910
11y = 41,910
y = 3,810
So there were 3,810 no votes.