Electoral System Flashcards
How is the government chosen in the commonwealth Caribbean?
The government is chosen via the voting process.
List 5 key words.
Election, Political Party, Candidate, Constituency and Representative.
How often is the General, Local Government and Tobago House of Assembly elections held?
Every 5 years, 3 years and 4 years.
What is an electoral system?
An electoral system refers to the method and the rules of counting votes to determine the outcome of elections.
Define First Past The Post (FPTP).
First Past The Post is the system where the country is divided into constituencies and the candidate with the most votes wins a seat in parliament.
What is a hung parliament?
A hung parliament is when no party has majority votes.
What are four advantages of FPTP?
Voters can choose representatives based on
competence and not only by the political party, Representatives can deal directly with the needs of
their constituencies, Allows for an independent candidate (not aligned to a political party) to be elected and It is simple to use and understand.
What are two disadvantages of FPTP?
The winning party may have the most seats but not the majority (popular vote) of the overall votes and Members of Parliament (MP) may focus on their constituency only and not on the interest of the nation.
What is Proportional Representation?
Under this system, the
country is treated as a single
constituency and voting is
done for the party and not for
a candidate.
What are two advantages of P.R?
MPs are more likely to focus on national issues and not on a
constituency level and Representation in parliament is a fair reflection of the strength of each party.
