Elections Flashcards
1
Q
What are the key traits of elections in the UK?
A
- Universal adult suffrage.
- One person, one vote.
- The secret ballot.
- Competition between candidates and parties.
2
Q
Other than elections what are methods of selecting a leader?
A
- Dictatorship.
- Military coup.
- Succession/dynasties.
- Absolute monarchy.
- Anarchy.
3
Q
What are the key functions of elections?
A
- Representation.
- Choosing government.
- Holding government to account.
- Participation.
- Influence over policy.
4
Q
Criteria for evaluating election systems.
A
- A fair result that gives, equal value to people’s votes across the country.
- A choice of candidates.
- An effective link between the elected representative and the constituency.
- A strong government that can pass laws and can be held to account by the electorate.
- Is it easy to use and understand.
5
Q
What type of system is FPTP?
A
Plurality.
6
Q
What are the main features of FPTP?
A
- It’s a constituency system: there are currently 650 parliamentary constituencies in the UK.
- Voters select a single candidate - ‘one person, one vote.’
- Constituencies are roughly equal size - ensured by the Electoral Commission and the Boundary Commissions for Scotland and Northern Ireland.
- Each constituency returns a single candidate - ‘winner-take-all’ effect.
- The winning candidate needs only to achieve a plurality of votes.
7
Q
Advantages of FPTP?
A
- Simplicity: The voting process is straightforward and easy for voters to understand.
- Quick Results: Counting votes is relatively simple, leading to faster election results and a quicker formation of governments.
- Stable Governments: FPTP often results in majority governments, providing stability and reducing the likelihood of coalition governments, which can be less stable. We’ve only not had a majority twice since 1945.
- Strong Representation: Typically, FPTP ensures that each constituency has a single representative who is directly accountable to their voters.
- Clear Choices: Voters are more likely to understand the distinct choices between candidates.
- Prevents extremist groups from entering government.
8
Q
Disadvantages of FPTP?
A
- Disproportional results: It can lead to a significant disparity between the percentage of votes received and the number of seats won by parties.
- Wasted Votes: Votes for losing candidates and surplus votes are not reflected in the final result.
- Encourages Tactical Voting: Voters might choose a less-preferred candidate who has a better chance of winning over their first choice.
- Marginalises Smaller Parties: smaller or regional parties may struggle to gain representation, even with substantial public support, limiting political diversity.
- Safe Seats: Areas with a strong preference for a particular party can result in “safe seats,” where elections have less competitive significance.
9
Q
Examples of FPTP being an ineffective system?
A
- In 2019 there were 229 MPs of the 650 MPs who won their constituency on less than 50% of the vote.
- In 2024 Labour won 411/650 seats with only 34% of the national vote.
- In the 2015 general election UKIP received nearly 12% of the votes but only received one seat, the Lib Dems won 8% of the vote and won 8 seats, Labour won 30% of the vote and 232 seats.
- According to analysis by the ERS show that in 2019 General Election 22.6 out of the 32 million votes didn’t count towards the result.
- Low levels of turnout mean government legitimacy can be questioned (2024 election had a 60% turnout).
10
Q
Examples of FPTP being an effective electoral system?
A
- The 2024 General Election orchestrated the most decisive transition of power in over a decade, Labour secured a 172-seat majority.
- Coalitions are fragile and FPTP prevents them often (reference to Europe).
- Quick to form government: 2024, took place on the 4th July and Starmer officially became PM the next day, in Belgium it took a year to form government.
11
Q
Where is AMS used?
A
- Scottish Parliamentary elections (73 MSPs by FPTP, 56 via the regional lists)
- Welsh Assembly elections (40 AMs FPTP, 20 via list)
12
Q
Key feature of AMS?
A
- It is a ‘mixed’ system.
- A proportion of seats are filled by FPTP.
- The remaining sets are filled up proportionally.
- Voters cast two votes.
- The list results are used to add ‘top-up’ representatives to make the result proportional via the D’Hondt method.
13
Q
How does the process of voting work under AMS?
A
- Before the election the political parties make a list of candidates they are putting up for the election: they are listed in order of preference.
- Each citizen gets two votes: in the first you vote for your favourite individual in the second you vote for your favourite political party.
14
Q
How does AMS work in Scotland?
A
- Anyone who is 16 or over can vote.
- The 1st vote is the constituency member vote - the person with the most vote wins. This vote fills up 73 seats of MSPs.
- The 2nd vote is the regional vote - the d’Hondt method is used. There is 8 regional voting areas within Scotland.
15
Q
How does AMS work in Wales?
A
- Every 5 years 60 people are elected to the Welsh Assembly
- Every citizen has 5 members representing them - one constituency member and 4 regional members.
- There is five regions in Wales.
16
Q
Advantages of AMS?
A
- Ensures a broad degree of proportionality between the % of list votes parties receive and their overall share of seats Parliament.
- It is easier for small parties to win representation, and it is harder for a single party to win an overall majority of seats.
- There are fewer wasted votes.
- Can still lead to stable governments because there is still an element of FPTP.
- You get all the advantages of both FPTP and PR systems such as government being held accountable (FPTP) and a more proportional Parliament.
17
Q
Disadvantages of AMS?
A
- Small size of electoral regions means that parties need to win around 6% of the list vote in a region to win a seats.
- The number of top-up seats is not always sufficient to compensate for the disproportionate number of constituency seats some parties may have won.
- The fact that there are MSPs elected through two different but linked methods can lead to ‘split voting’.
- Problems arise when political parties encourage the electorate to cast split votes as a way to manipulate the system.
- Parties can create supposedly distinct organisations for the purpose of standing candidates in the list section and being awarded list seats without the seats they have won in the constituency section being taken into account.
18
Q
Example of AMS being ineffective?
A
- In 2011, SNP won a majority of seats despite winning only 45% of the constituency vote and only 44% of the regional list vote.
- In the South Korean 2020 election, both major parties official stood only in the constituency section and running candidates in the list section under a different party name. This led to both parties winning significantly more top-up seats than they would otherwise would.
- In the Albanian election of 2005, the winning party won 44% of the vote in the constituency section, however, it won less than 8% of the vote in the list section.
19
Q
How does STV work?
A
- Each voter ranks the list of candidates in order of preference.
- Any candidate who has reached the required quota is declared elected.
- If not enough candidates have been elected, the count continues.
- If a candidate has more votes than the quota, then his or her surplus value is transferred to other candidates according to each voter’s allocated preferences.
- The candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and his or her votes are transferred to remaining candidates according to voters’ preferences.
- This process repeats from until the required number of candidates have been elected.
20
Q
Advantages of STV?
A
- The most representative system in the UK.
- A pure form of proportionality.
- Fewer wasted votes: people believe their votes are more meaningful.
- More choice for voters.
- Helps smaller parties to gain seats.
- More representation than under FPTP.
- Broader appeal from parties to other groups - they don’t just appeal to their base.
21
Q
Disadvantages of STV?
A
- Unstable government: more likely to have a coalition.
- Governments take time to form.
- Lack of party unity because it is a system of candidate v candidate.
- Hard to understand.
- Donkey and alphabetical voting are more common.
- Multi-member breaks clear MP-constituent links.
- Size of the region affects proportionality.
- Can lead to extremist parties being let in.
22
Q
Why must STV be used in Northern Ireland?
A
STV is used in Northern Ireland to create a power-sharing government that enables representatives of the Unionist and Nationalists to work together ending the 30 years of violence in Ireland.
23
Q
Where is SV used in the UK?
A
The system of SV was used in the UK to elect the Major for London, for metropolitan mayors and Police and Crime Commissioners.
24
Q
Key features of SV?
A
- Single-member constituencies.
- Electors have two votes: a first-preference vote and a second supplementary vote.
- The system means that voters should consider which candidates will reach the final run-off, will vote tactically if they want their vote to count.
25
Q
How does the process of voting work under SV?
A
- Winning candidates in the election must gain a minimum of 50% of all votes cast.
- Votes are counted according to first preference.
- If no candidate reaches 50% in the first round the top two candidates remain in the election an all other candidates drop out their vote being redistributed on the basis of their second vote.
- The candidate with the first-choice and second-choice votes is elected.
26
Q
What type of system is SV?
A
Majority
27
Q
Advantages of SV?
A
- The MP-constituent link is retained.
- Outcomes could produce a strong and stable majority government.
- By requiring winners to receive a majority of the vote elections provide a candidate with a stronger mandate.
- Transferred second preferences means that the beliefs of other parties can be taken into account.
- The need to win a majority rather than a simple plurality could encourage more competition is safe seats.
- Voters get more choice.
- Third party supporters are less likely to vote tactically and are more likely to actually give their vote to their preferred candidate.
28
Q
Disadvantages of SV?
A
- Although fewer votes are ‘wasted’ that in FPTP - the system of SV does not ensure that winning candidates have the support of 50% of voters.
- For a candidate to succeed they must be the first choice of a substantial number of voters.
- If there are more than two strong candidates voter must guess which two will make the final round and if they guess incorrectly, their second-preference vote will be wasted.
- SV does not produce very proportionate results and still underrepresents small parties.
29
Q
Strengths of referendums?
A
- They enable the electorate to decide on specific issues.
- Allow people to express their views irrespective of party affiliations.
- Can help to create a more engaged and better educated and informed electorate.
- Makes the population more active between elections.
- They can settle long-standing disputes and issues of constitutional interest.
- Referendums make government more responsive by forcing them to listen to public opinion.
30
Q
Weaknesses of referendums?
A
- Referendums undermines the authority of Parliament.
- Allows politicians to acquit themselves of responsibility for making difficult decisions.
- Campaigns can be misleading or oversimplify complicated issues.
- Too much regular use of referendums might result in voter apathy or fatigue.
- They place big political decisions in the hands of people who have limited knowledge.
