Electoral Rules and The Quality of Representation Flashcards
majoritarian model of democracy
concentration of power in a single-party majority government.
electoral system usually favours a two-party system, often using FPTP voting.
consensus model of democracy
power is more dispersed and shared among different political actors.
emphasizes inclusivity, negotiation, and compromise.
the government often involves coalitions, and there’s a proportional representation electoral system
advantages of majoritarian democracy
more effective, less inclusive
advantages of consensus democracy
more inclusive, less effective
types of electoral systems
majority / plurality system = winner takes all
- plurality (First Past the Post): The candidate with the most votes wins, even without a majority.
- majority Systems: Require an absolute majority (over 50%). May involve:
proportional representation = translate votes into seats proportionally
mixed system
FPTP voting
country is divided into electoral districts or constituencies. In each district, voters choose a candidate. The candidate who receives the most votes in that district wins, regardless of whether they get a majority (over 50%) of the votes
most votes wins
electoral formula
the method used to calculate the allocation of seats based on votes
district magnitude
number of representatives elected from each district
electoral threshold
minimum percentage of votes that a party needs to gain representation in legislature
total membership of elected body
total number of seats in the legislative body
influence of presidential elections on legislative actions
two-party presidential race may encourage two-party legislative race
malapportionment
number of the elected in different districts poorly allocated based on populations (mismatch district’s population and vote share)
interparty electoral links
extent to which electoral rules encourage or discourage cooperation between parties.
attributes to categorise disproportionality
disproportionality arises from the mismatch between vote shares and seat shares
electoral formula
district magnitude
electoral threshold
total membership elected body
influence of presidential elections
malapportionment
interparty electoral links
electoral formula & disproportionality
majoritary / plurality have a winner takes all methods, leaving minorities unrepresented.
proportional representation includes minorities
also, different methods (e.g., d’Hondt, Sainte-Laguë) used in PR systems to calculate votes can favor large or small parties
= PR is better
PR better, includes minorities
district magnitude & disproportionality
higher magnitudes in PR systems reduce disproportionality, while larger districts in majority/plurality systems increase it.
proportional representation have more representatives from a single district (higher magnitude), leads to more proportional outcomes
majority/plurality: only one representative elected, common in majoritarian systems
= higher magnitude is better
higher magnitude leads to more proportionality
electoral threshold & disproportionality
high thresholds can prevent smaller parties from gaining seats, leading to fewer (but larger) parties.
low / no threshold allows for greater party fragmentation and more representation of smaller parties
minimum vote percentages to gain representation (e.g., 5% in Germany) limit smaller parties
= lower is better
lower threshold allows for better fragemntation, more representation
total membership of elected body & disproportionality
larger legislature tends to allow for more accurate representation of smaller parties and minority groups.
smaller legislature may result in less proportional outcomes, with larger parties dominating.
= larger is better
larger = more minorities / small groups included
influence of presidential elections on legislative race & disproportionality
strong presidential influence = in presidential systems, the presidents party may dominate the legislature
weak / no influence = in parliamentary systems or seperate presidential / legislative elections, the influence is minimal
= no influence is better
parliamentary > presidential
no influence = better and parliamentary > presidential
malapportionment & disproportionality
high malapportionment: some districts have significantly more or fewer voters per representative, leading to unequal representation
low / no malapportionment ensures that all districts have a roughly equal voter-to-representative ratio, promoting fairness
= low is better for voter-to-representative ratio
interparty electoral links & disproportionality
high interparty links are systems that encourage alliances, coalitions, or joint lists between parties to maximize electoral success. cooperation improves proportionality
low interparty links are systems that encourage parties to compete independently, often seen in majoritarian systems where coalition-building before elections is less common
= high is better
one-to-one congruence
citizen-representative
measured by the absolute ideological distance between the citizen’s preferences and those of the representative
many-to-one congruence
distribution of citizens - representative
several way to measure this:
- absolute median citizen congruence
- absolute citizen congruence
- relative citizen congruence
many-to-many congruence
distribution of citizens - distribution of representatives
recognizes that there are multiple citizens with diverse preferences and multiple representatives with varying ideological stances
congruence is high when the distrubutions are similar, and perfect when they are identical.
this approahc recognizes the complexity of representation in a democratic context
trade-off between majoritarian electoral rules and proportional electoral rules
majoritarian systems may enhance government accountability and clarity of responsibility
proportional systems are better at ensuring that legislative bodies reflect the ideological diversity of the electorate
traditional measures of representation and congruence
traditional measures of representation overlook the complexity of how citizen preferences are translated into legislative outcome
therefore new measure –> many-to-many congruence
captures the relationship between the ideological preferences of both citizens and representatives, rather than just the alignment of the median voter with the government
electoral systems and congruence
proportional systems are generally better at translating the diverse preferences of the electorate into legislative representation, leading to more representative legislatures
