PSet 3 Plurality keeps getting 'segmentation fault'

Question

This keeps coming up with "segmentation fault" when I run it although everything I want it do is working. It seems to be coming from the last if statement because there's no fault when I delete that bracket but I can't figure out what's wrong with the bracket/an alternative to the bracket.

    int a = candidate_count;
    string winner[a];
    for (int i = 0; i < candidate_count; i++)
    {
        for (int j = i + 1; j < candidate_count; j++)
        {
            if (candidates[i].votes > candidates[j].votes)
            {
                winner[i] = candidates[i].name;
            }  
                if ((candidates[i].votes == candidates[j].votes) && (winner[i] = candidates[i].name))
                {
                    winner[j] = candidates[j].name;
                } 

        }
    }

    for (int i = 0; i < a; i++)
    {
        if (strcmp(winner[i], candidates[i].name) == 0)
        {
            printf("%s\n", winner[i]);
        }
    }
    return;
}

Please help, thanks!

Answer 1

you are acsessing a part of an array that you dont have acsess to

Answer 2

My approach was like this: 1-iterated through the candidates, and checked for the absolute maximum vote. 2-as I had the maximum vote, I iterated again through all the candidates, and checked which ones had the maximum vote, and declared the winner