Elections Flashcards
How does FPTP work
FPTP is a simple plurality system meaning only 1 more vote then the next highest opponent is required in order to win in a constituency. There are 650 constituencies and voters are given a ballot with multiple parties and are required to tick their desired party
What are the advantages of FPTP
- Mostly delivers a clear winner- Tony Blair won in 1997 with a clear majority of 179 seats and Keir Starmer with a majority of 156 in the 2024 General Election
- Stops extremist parties getting seats such as BNP
- System easy to use and understand-
- Delivers strong government-
Strong MP constituency link- Small constituency boundaries so 1 MP for small areas
What are the disadvantages of FPTP
Two party system- Labour or conservatives have won every single election since 1918
* Under-representation of smaller parties- Reform having almost 15% of the vote but only 0.8% of the seats in Parliament in the 2024 General Election
* Over-representation of bigger parties- Labour received over 63% of the seats in parliament despite under 34% of the vote
* Votes not always equal
* Safe seats
* Geographical concentration of votes
Legitimacy- can win majority without high percentage of votes
How does AMS work
It is a hybrid voting system combining Closed Party lists and FPTP. Voters have two votes, one for the party and the second for the candidate in a constituency. FPTP is used for the constituency vote and therefore party lists is used for the party vote
Advantages of AMS
More representative- Winner bonus not as big, better for smaller parties, less wasted votes-SNP received 44% of the vote and 49% of seats
Thresholds to stop extremist parties- Abolish WA received 1.6% of votes but no seats in the Welsh Senedd
More proportional results- collective representation- Green party received 4.7% of the vote and 6% of the seats
Allows voter to make wider more considerable choices
Each voter has at least one effective vote
Can deliver majorities
Disadvantages of AMS
Constituency votes can still be wasted due to FPTP(tactical voting)
Closed party lists hand party leaders considerable control and weaker constituency link for regional representatives due to multi-member constituencies
Time consuming-Very confusing system
Leads to coalitions which are not as stable- 2021 SNP made a formal agreement with Green party
2 tier system which can lead to confusion on where to go for constituents due to multi member constituencies
Overhang seats- this is combatted by parties for example SNP said to vote for SNP in party list vote but for Alba(another pro-independence party) in the constituency vote to try give more seats to SNP
Creation of different classes of representative
Complicated system for voters
Split voting- Political parties that get majority of constituency votes can encourage voters to vote for smaller allied parties in regional votes
How does STV work
Preferential voting system that uses multi-seat constituencies and by transferring votes that would otherwise be wasted. It allocates an individuals most preferred candidate and then subsequently transfers unneeded or unused votes after candidates are either elected or eliminated
Advantages of STV
Close correlation between votes and seats
voter choice is high; it is possible to choose between candidates standing for the same party as well as between candidates from different parties
In Northern Ireland it has created a power-sharing government that enables representatives of the two rival communities, the unionists and nationalists to work together, ending 30 years of violent disturbance in Northern Ireland
What are the disadvantages of STV
It is not fully proportional, particularly where smaller multi-member constituencies are used
In large multi-member constituencies, the link between the member and voters may be weak
Power-sharing governments may bring rival groups together but they are still prone to conflict. The Northern Ireland executive was suspended several times in its earlier years, including for almost five years in 2002-2007 in a result of a breakdown of trust
How does SV work
It is a majority system where voters are given two votes, one for their most preferred candidates and a second for the second most preferred candidate. If a candidate does not get over 50% of the vote after the first round, the top 2 parties go through to a second vote and the 2nd preferred votes are counted to deliver over 50%
Advantages of SV
Reduces amount of wasted votes as second votes are counted
Reduces chance of extremist candidates winning- Youtuber Niko Omilana received 2% of the vote but did not win
Produces a majority/legitimate winner
More choice- Usually over 20 candidates to chose from
Easy to use- only 2 votes
Disadvantages of SV
Leads to two party system- In 2021 MOL election Sadiq Khan(Labour) and Shaun Bailey(Conservatives) received a combination of 75% of the votes with the nearest competitor having only 8% of the votes
Can be overwhelming due to number of candidates for voters- over 20 candidates
Not very proportional- Tyranny of the Majority
Someone who wins majority of first votes may still lose due to 2nd preferences
Advantages of referendums
Enhances democracy
Gives legitimacy to the decision
Ends debate on issues
Tends to have good participation