Chapter 10-Electoral Systems Flashcards
What are the functions of Elections in the UK:
Representation Choosing a government Participation Influence over policy Accountability Citizen education Legitimacy Elite recruitment
What is a mandate?
An authoritative instruction; the doctrine of the mandate gives the party that wins a general election the authority to implement its manifesto commitments
What is a manifesto?
A document in which a political party sets out its policy programme at an election
What are the different level of elections?
General elections Elections to the devolved assemblies Local elections European Parliament elections By-elections
What is a by-election ?
A one-off election that takes place in an individual constituency when a vacancy arises between scheduled elections
What is a constituency?
A geographical area that elects one or more representatives to a legislative assembly
What are the four main types of electoral system?
Majoritarian system
Plurality system
Proportional representation
Mixed system
What is a majoritarian system?
An electoral system in which the winning candidate must achieve an absolute majority of votes cast in a single member constituency
What is a single member plurality system?
An electoral system in which the candidate with the most votes in a single member constituency wins
What is the First past the post system used for in the UK and what are its key features?
General elections to the House of Commons
Plurality system; single member constituencies; disproportional outcome
What is the supplementary vote system used for in the UK and what are its key features?
Mayor of london, directly elected mayors, police and crime commissioners
Majoritarian system used to elect individuals voters record two preferences winning candidate has a majority
What is regional list system used for in the UK and what are its key features?
List seats for the Scottish Parliament, welsh assembly and london assembly
Proportional representation system; electors vote for a party in multi member regions; proportional outcome
What is the additional member system used for in the UK and what are its key features?
Scottish Parliament, Welsh assembly, london assembly
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 bias to produce a proportional outcome
What is Single transferable vote system used for in the UK and what are its key features?
Assembly, local and European elections in Northern Ireland and local elections in Scotland and NI
Proportional representation system; electors rank candidates in multi member constituencies; proportional outcome
How does FPTP system operate?
MPs are elected in single-member constituencies. Each constituency in the UK elects one representative to the House of Commons
- Electors cast a single vote by writing a cross on the ballot paper beside the name of their favoured candidate
- a candidate requires a plurality of votes to win: that is one more vote than the second place candidate
How are constituency boundaries determined?
By independent boundary commissions which review the size of the electorate in each constituency every 8-12 years.
Differences in size are permitted if there are significant geographical factors
How might constituencies be unfair ?
At the 2017 election the most populous constituency was Isle of Wight had an electorate five times larger than the smallest constituency, Na h-Eilanen an Iar 110,700 v 21,300
Urban constituencies tend to have fewer electors than suburban and rural seats.
What are safe seats?
A constituency in which the incumbent part has a large majority and which is usually retained by the same political party election after elections
What is marginal seat?
A constituency where the incumbent party has a small majority and may thus be won by a different party at the next election.