3.1.2.2 Electoral systems Flashcards
what is an election
An election is a competitive process in which a designated group of people, known as the electorate, select individuals to serve in specified positions.
Functions of elections in the UK
- Representation
- Choosing a government
- Participation
- Influnece over Policy
- Accountability
- Citizen education
- Legitimacy
- Elite recruitment
Manifesto
A document in which a political party sets out its policy programme at an election
In a liberal democracy what should elections be
competitve, free and fair
what does a competitive election require
A competitive election requires that voters have a meaningful choice between different political parties.
What should the electoral system do
translate votes cast into seats won in the legislature in a reasonably accurate manner.
Different elections in the UK
- General Elections
- Elections to the devloved assemblies
- Local elections
- European parliament elections
- By-elections
By election
A one-off election that takes place in an individual constituency when a vacancy arises between scheduled elections.
Constituency
A geographical area that elects one or more representatives to a legislative assembly.
Three significant parts of the UK polity are not elected:
- the head of state - the hereditary monarch
- the upper chamber of parliament - the house of lords
- the judiciary
Different electoral systems
- Majoritarian system
- plurality system
- proportional representation
- mixed system
District magnitude
The number of representatives elected from a particular constituency.
Mixed system definition
An electoral system where a proportion of representatives are elected under a majoritarian/plurality system in single-member constituencies.
Proportional representation definition
An electoral system using multi-member constituencies
in which an electoral formula is used to match the percentage of seats won by each party to the percentage of votes they won.
Key feature of first-past-the-post
- Plurality system
- single-member constituencies
- disproportional outcome
Key feature of supplementary vote
Majoritarian system; used to elect individuals; voters record two preferences; winning candidate has a majority
Key feature of regional list
Proportional representation system; electors vote for a party in multi-member regions; proportional outcome
Key feature of single transferable vote
- Proportional representation system
- electors rank candidates in multi-member constituencies
- proportional outcome
Key feature of additional member system
- Mixed electoral system electors cast two votes — one for a constituency candidate elected by FPTP and one for a regional list candidate elected by closed list PR
- list candidates are allocated to parties on a corrective basis to produce a proportional outcome
Safe seats
The competitiveness of elections varies significantly across constituencies. In safe seats, the same party wins at election after election because the incumbent party’s majority is so large. The safest seat in 2015 was Liverpool, Walton, where Steve Rotheram won 81% of the vote
Safe seat
A constituency in which the incumbent party has a large majority, and which is usually retained by the same political party at election after election.
Marginal seat
A constituency where the incumbent party has a small majority and which may thus be won by a different party at the next election.
Swing
The extent of change in support for one party to support for another party from one election to another.
Features of the first past the post election
- a two-party system
- a winner’s bonus
- bias to a major party
- discrimination against third and smaller parties
- single-party government
two-party system
It favours major parties that have strong nationwide support, which gives them a good chance of securing a parliamentary majority.
Winner’s bonus definition
The system exaggerates the support received by the most popular party, giving it more seats than is proportional to the number of votes it received, thus boosting its majority in parliament.
Number of reasons for Bias
- Tactical voting
- Differences in constituency sizes
- Differential turnout
Conservative success in 2015 was due to
- Gains from the lib dems
- Strong performances in marginal seats
- labour’s collapse in Scotland
Minority government
A government consisting of members of one political party which does not have an absolute majority of seats.
Coalition
A government consisting of two or more political parties, usually with an absolute majority of seats in parliament, formed after an agreement on policy and ministerial posts.
Majority government
A government consisting of members of one political party which has an absolute majority of seats.
Effective representation
Single-member constituencies provide a clear link between voters and their elected representative, with one MP representing the interests of the area.
Keeps out extremist parties - FPTP
Parties on the far right and far left have not prospered in the UK, in part because FPTP makes it difficult for them to win seats at Westminster
Arguments against FPTP
- Disproportional outcomes
- Electoral deserts
- plurality rather tha majority support
- votes are of unequal value
- limited choice
Tactical voting
Voting for the candidate most likely to defeat the voter’s least favoured candidate.
Wasted vote
A vote for a losing candidate in a single-member constituency, or a vote for a winning candidate that was surplus to the plurality required for victory.
When was tactical voting evident?
1997 General Election
Supplementary vote
The supplementary vote (SV) is used to elect the mayor of London and directly elected mayors in other towns and cities. It is also used to elect police and crime commissioners (PCCs) (except in contests with only two candidates, where single-member plurality is used).
Key features of the supplementary vote
- The voter records their first and second preferences on the ballot paper.
- If no candidate wins a majority of first preferences, all but the top two candidates are eliminated and the second preference votes for the two remaining candidates are added to their first preference votes.
- The candidate with the highest total is elected.
Advantages of the supplementary vote
- The winning candidate must achieve broad support, giving them greater legitimacy.
- The votes of people who use both their first and second preferences to support minor parties do not influence the election outcome.
Disadvantages of the supplemetary vote
- The winning candidate may be elected without winning a majority of votes if second preference votes are not used effectively.
- The winning candidate does not need to get a majority of first preference votes.
- The system would not deliver a proportional outcome if used for general elections.
Single transferable vote
The single transferable vote (STV) is used in Northern Ireland for elections to the Assembly, local government and the European Parliament. It is also used for local elections in Scotland — and for general elections in the Republic of Ireland.
Features of single tranferrable vote
- Representatives are elected in large multi-member constituencies.
- Voting is ordinal — electors can vote for as many or as few candidates as they like.
- A candidate must achieve a quota. Any votes in excess of this quota are redistributed on the basis of second preferences.
- If no candidate reaches the quota on the first count, the lowest-placed candidate is eliminated and their second preferences are transferred.
Advantages of single transferrable vote
- It delivers proportional outcomes and ensures that votes are largely of equal value.
- The government is likely to consist of a party or group of parties that win over 50% of the vote.
- Voters choose between a range of candidates, including different candidates from the same party, meaning there is greater choice.
Disadvantages of single transferrable vote
- It can be less accurate in translating votes into seats than proportional representation list systems.
- Large multi-member constituencies weaken the link between individual
MPs and their constituency. - It is likely to produce a coalition government that may be unstable and can give disproportional influence to minor parties that hold the balance of power.
- The counting process is lengthy and complex.
key features of Additional memeber system
- A proportion of seats in the legislative assembly are elected using FPTP in single-member constituencies.
- A smaller number of representatives, known as additional members, are elected in multi-member constituencies using the regional list system of proportional representation.
- For the regional list seats, political parties draw up a list of their candidates and decide the order in which they will be elected.
- Electors can only vote for a party or an independent candidate. The list of candidates for each party appears on the ballot paper, but electors cannot choose between candidates representing the same party.
Advantages of additional member system
- It combines the best features of FPTP and proportional representation, e.g. balancing the desirability of constituency representation with that of fairness of outcomes.
- Results are broadly proportional and votes are less likely to be wasted.
- Voters have greater choice. Split-ticket voting is allowed: a voter may use their constituency vote to support a candidate from one party and
their list vote to support a different party. - Votes are easy to count and it is not difficult for voters to understand
how the outcome is reached.
Split ticket voting
The practice of voting for candidates from different parties in an election where an elector is permitted to cast more than one vote.
Disadvantages of additional member system
- It creates two categories of representative, one with constituency duties and one without. This may create tensions within the legislative assembly.
- Parties have significant control over the closed lists used to elect additional members and voters cannot choose between candidates from the same party.
- Smaller parties are often under-represented because in many multi- member seats, only a few representatives are elected. Larger parties are also over-represented if other votes are split evenly between many small parties.
- Proportional outcomes are less likely where the number of additional members is low, as in the Welsh Assembly.
The impact on voter choice
- Voters have greater choice. This has allowed voting behaviour to become more sophisticated.
- Electors recognise that a vote for a minor party is less likely to be wasted under AMS and STV.
- Evidence from other countries shows that turnout in general elections conducted under PR is higher than where FPTP is used.
Electoral reform definition
Changes made to an electoral system
or a change from one electoral system to an alternative. In Britain, the term commonly refers to the campaign to replace FPTP with PR.
referendum definition
A vote on a single issue put to a public ballot by the government.
referendum
A referendum is a popular vote on a single issue. It is the major modern- day example of direct democracy. In states such as Switzerland or the Republic of Ireland, referendums are used widely to resolve major political and constitutional issues.
Local referendums
- establishing directly elected mayors
- congestion charges
- council tax increases
- neighbourhood plans
- parish polls
Key factors influencing the decision of a natonal referendum have included
- Constitutional changes
- Coalition agreement
- Party management
- Political pressure
The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 gave the Electoral Commission specific responsibilities on regulating referendums
- Wording
- Campaign participation
- Campaign spending
- Conduct of the campaign
Campaign participation
Groups and individuals who expect to
spend more than £10,000 on referendum campaigning must register as participants with the Electoral Commission. The Commission designates the lead organisations for each side of the campaign. These organisations have a higher spending limit, receive public money and
are entitled to television broadcasts.
Referendums have had an impact on UK political life in three main areas:
- direct democracy
- parliamentary sovereignty and representative democracy
- constitutional convention
