📰| 11. Voting Systems

Question 1

Features of the Additional Member System

Answer 1

• Constituency Paper
• Regional Paper
• Proportionial Representation

Question 2

Strengths of the Additional Member System

Answer 2

• Voters have more choice
• Smaller parties more likely to win seats
• Seats reflect share of votes

Question 3

Weaknesses of the Additional Member System

Answer 3

• Less Democratic
• ‘Kingmaker’ Problem
• Coalition / Minority Governments

Question 4

Features of AMS:

Constituency Paper

Answer 4

• One feature of the Additional Member System is the constituency paper.
• Voters are given a constituency paper that allows them to pick a candidate. The candidate with the most votes becomes the local MSP for that constituency.
• For example, Graeme Dey was elected as the MSP for the Angus South constituency.

Question 5

Features of AMS:

Regional Paper

Answer 5

• One feature of the Additional Member System is the regional paper.
• Voters are given a regional paper that allows them to vote for a party. The parties are then allocated a number of seats in the Scottish Parliament based on their share of the vote.
• For example, parties that could have been voted for on the regional paper include the Scottish National Party and the Scottish Labour Party.

Question 6

Features of AMS:

Proportional Representation

Answer 6

• One feature of the Additional Member System is proportional representation.
• When the Scottish Parliament was open in 1999, it was decided that MSPs would be elected through a proportional representation system in order to mirror the electorate’s vote in parliament.
• For example, since the first Scottish Parliament election in 1999 MSPs have been elected through the Additional Member System.

Question 7

Strengths of AMS:

Voters Have More Choice

Answer 7

• One strength of the Additional Member System is that voters have more choice.
• The Additional Member System gives voters two ballot papers, allowing them to support more than one party in elections and eliminating the need for tactical voting.
• For example, a voter who supports Scottish Independence could vote for both the Scottish National Party and the Greens.

Question 8

Strengths of AMS:

Small Parties More Likely to Win Seats

Answer 8

• One strength of the Additional Member System is that small parties are more likely to win seats.
• Small parties being more likely to win seats means that they do not suffer from wasted votes, and the Scottish Parliament represents the population’s views more accurately.
• For example, the Scottish Green Party currently hold 7 seats in the Scottish Parliament.

Question 9

Strengths of AMS:

Seats Reflect Share of Votes

Answer 9

• One strength of the Additional Member System is that the number of seats a party gets reflects their share of votes.
• The number of seats each party gets in the Scottish Parliament reflects their number of votes more closely than the First Past The Post system.
• For example, in the 2019 UK election the SNP won 45% of the votes and gained over 80% of seats, but in the 2021 Scottish Election they won 47.7% of the votes and gained 49.6% of seats.

Question 10

Weaknesses of AMS:

Less Democratic

Answer 10

• One weakness of the Additional Member System is that it is less democratic.
• MSPs selected via the regional list are not accountable to voters, and are able to gain a seat in the Scottish Parliament if they are kept near the top of their parties ‘list’ regardless of rejection as a constituent candidate.
• For example, Labour’s Johann Lamont received a Glasgow regional seat in 2016 despite losing Glasgow Pollok to SNP’s Humza Yousaf.

Question 11

Weaknesses of AMS:

‘Kingmaker’ Problem

Answer 11

• One weakness of the Additional Member System is the ‘kingmaker’ problem.
• A party with very few seats can end up with significant power by choosing to form a coalition government, or vote to assist a minority government.
• For example, the Scottish Greens formed a co-operation agreement with the SNP in August 2021, which allowed for co-leaders Lorna Slater and Patrick Harvie to be appointed as cabinet ministers in the Scottish Government.

Question 12

Weaknesses of AMS:

Coalition / Minority Governments

Answer 12

• One weakness of the Additional Member System is that it allows for coalition or minority governments.
• The AMS usually does not give one party an overall majority in the Scottish Parliament, which usually leads to parties working together to form a government or governing with under half of seats.
• For example, in 2019 the FPTP system gave the Conservatives a majority in Westminister but in 2021 the AMS led to a minority SNP Government.