Elections Flashcards
What are the systems you need to know?
First Past The Post (FPTP)
Supplementary Vote (SV)
Single Transferable Vote (STV)
Additional Member System (AMS)
What are first order elections?
Important national elections that usually get high turnout and media attention
What are second order elections?
A less significant election, eg. locally or nationally, that usually have lower voter turnouts and less media attention
What are marginal seats?
A constituency held with a small majority in a legislative election
What are safe seats?
A parliamentary seat likely to be retained with a large majority in an election
What is a minority government?
A government formed by a political party that doesn’t have an overall majority of MPs in the House of Commons
What is a hung Parliament?
A Parliament in which no political party has enough seats to secure an overall majority.
When has the UK had a minority government?
1996
When has the UK had a hung Parliament?
2017
What is a majority government?
A government formed by one party with a majority over all other parties in the legislature
When has the UK had a majority government?
2024 Labour
What is tactical voting?
A voter considers the possible ballots cast by other voters in order to maximise their satisfaction with the election results
Give an example of tactical voting in the UK
Reform
What is the landslide effect?
A landslide victory is an election result where the victorious candidate/ party wins by an overwhelming margin
What is an elective dictatorship?
A government elected through democratic means, but then exercises power in a way that undermines democracy, often concentrating authority in a leader/ ruling party’s hands
What is the D’Hondt formula?
A method of allocating seats in proportional representation electoral systems.
Give an example of the D’Hondt formula in use:
2021 - Scottish Parliament Election - Glasgow
What is a Droop Quota?
A formula used in STV elections to determine the minimum number of votes a candidate needs to be elected
Give 3 of 5 functions of elections (why do we have them?)
Choosing government
Legitimacy
Participation
Influence over policy
Representation
Give 2 of 4 ways we can evaluate voting systems:
Strong, stable government?
Constituency Link/ accountability?
Proportional results?
Choice of candidate?
What is the National body?
Westminster
What voting system does the national body of Westminster use?
FPTP
What is the Devolved body? Give 1
Scottish Parliament
Welsh senedd
Greater London Assembly
Northern Irish Assembly
What voting system do the devolved bodies use?
Scottish Parliament, Welsh Senedd, and the Greater London Assembly use AMS.
Northern Irish Assembly uses STV
What is the local body?
Councils
What is the voting system used by the local body (councils)?
FPTP
STV in Scotland
What is the simple plurality system?
FPTP (First Past the Post)
What are the 2 Majoritarian systems?
SV (Supplementary vote)
AV (Alternative Vote)
What is the Proportional representation system?
Closed Party List
What is the hybrid system?
Additional Member System
Simple Plurality (FPTP) and Majoritarian systems (SV and AV) ALL use _____ _______ _______ (All return 1 MP)
small single member
The Proportional representation (Closed party list) ALL use ______ ______ ______
large multi Member
The hybrid system (AMS) uses a ___ of both small single member and large multi member
mix
What is the family for First Past The Post?
A simple plurality system
In FPTP, the voter places a single X on the ballot next to their favourite _________.
CONSTITUENCY: The candidate with the most votes is elected, and all that is needed is one vote more than the next candidate. There is no need to obtain over __% of the votes.
NATIONALLY: The winner is the party which wins the __________ of seats in the UK.
Usually, this is the party that wins the highest percentage of the vote BUT not always. For example, in 1951, the Conservatives won the election but had less votes than Labour.
If a party doesn’t gain a majority of seats in the House of Commons, this is called a _____ Parliament, which can form a ________ government or form a ________ with another party (eg. 2010). However, this is rare!
In FPTP, the voter places a single X on the ballot next to their favourite candidate.
CONSTITUENCY: The candidate with the most votes is elected, and all that is needed is one vote more than the next candidate. There is no need to obtain over 50% of the votes.
NATIONALLY: The winner is the party which wins the majority of seats in the UK.
Usually, this is the party that wins the highest percentage of the vote BUT not always. For example, in 1951, the Conservatives won the election but had less votes than Labour.
If a party doesn’t gain a majority of seats in the House of Commons, this is called a hung Parliament, which can form a minority government or form a coalition with another party (eg. 2010). However, this is rare!
A minority government was formed in _____, and a coalition government was formed in ____.
2017
2010
What are the disadvantages of FPTP? Give 3 of 5.
Disproportional outcomes and weak mandates
Distribution of support is as important as strength of support
Wasted votes
Limited voter choice
Tactical voting
Why is distribution of a party’s support so important?
It’s better to be loved in some seats and despised in others than just liked everywhere.
What is a majority and minority mandate?
A majority mandate is when an MP has the support of over half of the voters in their constituency.
A minority mandate is when an MO has the support of less than half of the voters in their constituency.
What are wasted votes?
Votes for losing candidates are wasted, as they don’t help the party.
Votes for winning candidates are also wasted, as they don’t help the party to win more seats.
How is there limited voter choice with FPTP?
On ballots, voters only mark a single X next to their preferred candidate.
How do parties treat safe and marginal seats differently?
Marginal sets get far more attention.
Parties are unlikely to to spend much time and money campaigning in safe seats as the outcome seems so obvious that this would be a waste.
The majority of resources are don’t on the most marginal of seats, where parties believe they’ve got a chance of winning.
How much tactical voting was there in 2019?
YouGov polling found that 32% voted tactically in the general election
What are electoral pacts?
When parties make a pact for mutual advantage
The Jenkins Commission recommended what system?
AV+
What are 3 advantages of FPTP?
Simplicity
Stability
MP-constituency link
Why is FPTP said to be simple to use?
Voters simply mark an X next to their preferred candidate.
Easy for voters to understand the result -> the candidate with the plurality of the vote is the winner.
To what extent is simplicity an important asset in FPTP?
Electoral reform supporters argue that voters have proven in other elections that they are capable of using more complicated ballot papers.
It’s also not important for voters to understand how ballots are counted under complicated systems.
Why is FPTP said to promote a stable political system?
It’s easier for a single party to win a majority, and coalitions and minority governments are unusual.
Are majority governments quicker to form?
FPTP usually enables one party to win a majority, so governments are formed almost immediately and they can get straight to work carrying out manifesto policies.
For European countries using more proportional systems, it’s rarer for a party to win majority, and it takes time for these governments to form.
Are majority governments strong, stable, and accountable?
Strong -> minority governments may struggle to get its agenda through Parliament but slim majority governments can be weak.
Theresa May sought an early election in 2017, as her small majority left her vulnerable in divisive Brexit votes.
Are majority governments strong, stable, and accountable?
Stable -> A coalition may break down and collapse before the next general election.
But, minority and coalition governments in Scotland and Wales have prove to be stable, and the 2010- 2015 Conservatives-Lib Dem coalition lasted a full term.
are majority governments strong, stable, and accountable?
Accountable -> A majority government is clearly responsible for policy successes and failures.
But, voters may know which party to blame, but, unless they live in a closely contested marginal seat, it might be difficult to elect an alternative.
What does uncontested mean?
Where the number of candidates standing for election in a ward is the same as the number of available seats - these candidates automatically win without any votes being cast
What does under-contested mean?
Where a party is guaranteed to win at least one seat in a ward, because there are not enough candidates to contest every seat.
What is dyadic representation?
The representation that each MP is able to offer their constituents in the House of Commons and locally
Why can extremely proportional electoral systems lack dyadic representation?
Some national elections in other countries treat the entire country as one constituency, and voters choose a party rather than a local candidate. This allows for a much more proportional distribution of seats, but voters lose their local champion, and candidates chosen by the parties are unlikely to represent all towns and regions.
Why do supporters of electoral reform feel that collective representation is more important than dyadic representation?
Many MPs represent constituencies they had little prior connection to. Plus, how well can an MP, elected by a minority, represents the diverse views of their constituents?
In disciplined, whipped Parliamentary politics, what room is these for dyadic, local representation?
What is collective representation?
The composition of Parliament should more accurately represent the political views of the electorate as a whole
FPTP usually provides a ______, single party stable government.
The “_________ effect” delivers a “working majority” to carry out its mandate, avoiding unstable coalitions or ineffective minority governments.
Since 1945, ONLY 2010 and 2017 didn’t produce a majority government in elections. 2019 seemed to have indicated a r_____ to the large majorities of earlier decades.
strong
landslide
return
Alternative PR systems often cause instability and they give small parties too much _______.
power
In the PR Closed party list (CPL), voters select a _____ rather than a candidate.
party
FPTP is easy to u__________ and c________.
understand
calculate
FPTP usually creates a single party government, which makes it clear who is r__________!
It’s easier for the public to judge the party’s p____________, and there is no need for post-election d____.
responsible
performance
deals
FPTP is good as it excludes _________ parties, like the BNP.
Extremist
A weaker argument FOR FPTP is that the public are not in favour of change, since…
this has changed and the public can learn to understand new systems.
Where was the Closed Party List system used?
The UK votes for the EU elections
Is used for part of the Hybrid AMS Devolved elections
The Closed Party List: Constituency?
Large multi member
What is the voting process for The Closed Party List?
The ballot paper just has a list of parties. Voters mark an X for the party they support.
Each party publishes an ordered list of candidates for each area - voters can see the candidates BUT CANNOT vote for or avoid voting for one.
If multiple candidates are elected - they are chosen from the order given.
The Du Hondt’ formula will calculate if and how many seats should be allocated.
How does the supplementary vote (SV) work?
The voter records their first and second preferences.
If no candidate wins a majority (over 50%) of first preferences, all but the top 2 candidates are eliminated.
The second preference votes for the two remaining candidates are added to their first preference votes.
The candidate with the highest total is elected.
Give 2 of 3 strengths for SV
Broader support for the winner
Simple and straightforward
Has allowed independent candidates to win
Give 2 of 3 weaknesses for SV
- SV isn’t proportional as one candidate is elected to office.
- The winner doesn’t need to get an absolute majority of votes if there is a second round.
- The winner of the first round may still lose the second round. The least unpopular rather than the most popular end up winning.
- Voters need to be able to identify the likely top 2 candidates, which isn’t always easy.
- Has now been removed for future mayoral elections, as the government said people prefer FPTP’s accountability.
The SV system tends to be suited to electing a leader such as the ____ _____.
City mayor
Give 2 of 3 specific advantages of CPL
Very representative! The most accurate
As simple as FPTP - requiring only an X from the voter
Can be useful to enforce positive discrimination (gender) to transform bodies (such as the Welsh Senedd).
Give 1 of 2 specific disadvantages of CPL
The Party has more control over selection of candidates can mean ”parachuting” candidates in. For example, in the first welsh Devolved body, the leader was chosen by Blair!
Voter cannot avoid candidates which are disliked.
Where is STV used?
Northern Ireland for elections to the Assembly and to local government
How does STV work?
1) The voter puts choices in order of preference
2) If any candidate reaches a QUOTA on 1st preference, then hat candidate is elected.
3) If the candidate receives a surplus (more votes than they need to reach the quota), then their extra votes are passed on to each voter’s second-favourite candidate.
4) If seats remain unfilled, candidates with the LEAST number of votes is eliminated and that candidate’s 2nd preferences are redistributed.
5) This continues until the required NUMBER of candidates is filled.
What are the 2 specific advantages of STV?
1) Allows the voter a choice of individuals within parties.
2) Would get rid of safe seats.
What are 2 of the 3 specific disadvantages of STV?
1) Choices may be difficult for the voter
2) The time needed for results
3) Calculation is complex and may not be clear to voters
Give 2 of 3 general advantages of PR:
Representative
Avoid “wasted votes”
Avoids “tactical voting”
Give 2 of 3 general disadvantages of PR:
Can create unstable government or reliance on coalitions
It is hard to hold a clear mandate in coalitions
Can allow extremist parties (eg. FN in France and Italy)
How does AMS work?
With AMS, voters cast two different votes a) local representative to represent their constituency
b) a party to be allocated more proportionally
Give 2 of 5 arguements in favour of AMS
1) “Top up” results in broadly proportional representation.
2) Choice by split ticket voting
3) Zipping
4) Retains the MP-constituency link
5) Produces strong and stable coalition governments (only 1 collapse in Green SNP)
Give 2 of 5 arguments used against AMS:
1) Often results in coalitions
2) Gives parties complete control over choosing their Regional Members
3) Removes choice from voters in the PR closed list vote
4) It is not PR - and CAN still exclude minority parties and independents (Wales has no Greens)
5) Creates two types of MP
For a leader, __ seems best.
For others, ___ seems best.
SV leader
AMS others
Evaluation and score criteria for voting systems: give 3 of 5
Strong government
Strong MP-constituency link
Ease of use/ clarity
Choice of candidates
Proportional result
What is a one party system?
A form of govt where the country is ruled by a single political party
Eg. CCP Chinese Communist Party
What is a dominant party system?
A category of parties or political organisations that have successively secured election victories and whose defeat is unlikely for the foreseeable future.
What is a two party system?
A political system where 2 major political parties consistently dominate the political landscape
What is a two and a half party system?
Debatable
Two main parties exist in the party system, but a 3rd smaller party challenges the dominance of the 2 main ones
What is a multi party system?
A political system where more than two meaningfully- distinct parties regularly run for office and win elections.
Can be done separately or through coalition.
Multiple parties have a realistic chance of governing
What is split ticket voting?
A voter in an election votes for candidates from different political parties when multiple offices are being decided by a single election.
What is an “Effective number of electoral parties” (ENEP)
Measures the number of parties that have a significant chance of winning seats in an election, providing insight into the level of party fragments and competition within a political system.
What is an “Effective number of parliamentary parties” (ENPP)?
Quantifies the number of parties that actively participate in a legislature, reflecting the degree of political competition and representation within a parliamentary system.
In the UK, it is traditionally a two party system between ________ and ______, BUT there have been periods where dominance was challenged.
Labour and conservatives
When has the UK been considered a dominant party system?
Blair’s early years 1997-2003
When has there been dominance challenges in the UK?
Liberal Democrat and conservative coalition in 2010
And
Minority assisted government in 2017
In the UK, how many hung parliaments have there been since 1945?
3 (1974,2010,2017)
Give 3 of 4 ways there has been an impact on voting systems used in the UK?
Impact on type of government
Impact on representation of small parties
Impact on voter choice
Impact on compromise politics
