electoral systems Flashcards
what are functions of elections?
representation: by ensuring MPs are accountable to their constituents at regular intervals, choose a representative to speak on behalf of constituency
choosing government: party wins election secure right to govern, leader of winning party has the right to form a government
holding government to account: every 5 years government renews its mandate, voters can reject unpopular government, MPs held to account e.g after expenses scandal some MPs stood down rather than face voters
participation: allows citizens to actively participate, manifestoes provide information on which voters can make a judgement
what is electoral mandate?
authority extended to winning party or candidate following success in an election
when is FPTP used?
UK general elections and local council elections
how does FPTP work?
voters choose preferred candidate, person with most votes in a constituency wins a seat, party with most seats has the right to form government (doesn’t have to be a majority)
what is a safe seats?
a constituency that will usually remain under the control of a particular party, half of constituencies are considered safe, opposition voters often feel their vote is wasted
what are marginal seats?
constituencies that are highly contested and often swing from one party to another, voters have more influence on national result
what are advantages of FPTP?
speed and simplicity: easy to use ‘X’ next to candidate, result reached quickly (morning after), government rapidly formed (except 2010 election took 5 days)
strong and stable government: promotes a two-party system and tends to produce majority governments which gain mandate (allowed Thatcher to carry out plans for reduction of trade union power)
exclusion of extremists: extreme parties (e.g racist) unlikely to gain power
strong link between MPs and constituents: constituencies small and MPs responsible for representing constituents, correspondence and surgeries
what are disadvantages of FPTP?
MPs and government can be elected on a minority: more than half of MPs typically don’t win majority and May formed minority government in 2017
lack of proportionality: doesn’t translate number of votes into seats, UKIP won 3.9 mil votes in 2015 but only one seat but SNP 56 of 59 seats with 50% of vote because geographically concentrated
votes are of unequal value: votes in small constituencies count more e.g. 9407 votes to elect Orkney and Shetland mp, 28,591 for Isle of Wight mp
when is additional member system used?
Scottish Parliament, welsh assembly, Greater London assembly
how does AMS work?
(hybrid, mixed system)
voters get two votes, first for constituency candidate who is elected using FPTP
second for a party list, votes are distributed to parties proportionally
parliament made up of representatives from both the constituencies and party list
MSPs represent constituencies and 56 from party list
what are advantages of AMS?
more proportional - d’Hondt formula used to determine how many members a party should be allocated e.g. Scotland 1997 conservatives won no seats in Westminster but list enabled it to win 18 seats in Scottish
elections 1999
maintains strong link between member and constituents
gives voters a wider choice - they can vote for a ‘split ticket’
what are disadvantages of AMS?
two different types of member - some with constituency responsibilities and some without, create animosity, if elected via party list seen as having gotten in ‘through the back door’
closed list system - party leadership ranks candidates in order on list, can use their power to limit chances of dissident members being elected, undemocratic
smaller parties less represented than under a fully proportional system
more complex and confusing
may produce unstable minority or coalition government, majority governments rare
when is single transferable vote used?
Northern Ireland assembly and Scottish council elections
how does STV work?
uses multi-member constituencies, voters rank the candidates in order of preference, in order to be elected a candidate needs to get more votes than a quote which is derived using the droop formula
surplus votes about the quote are proportionally redistributed to second preferences
if no one reaches the quota, least popular candidate is eliminated and the second preferences of those who votes for them are redistributed, process continues until all the seats are filled
what are advantages of STV?
proportional - close correlation between votes and seats
voter choice is high - between parties and candidates in the same party
coalition government is more likely so parties have to work together e.g Northern Ireland STV created a power sharing government that enables representatives from unionists and nationalists to work together, ending 30 years of violence
fewer wasted votes
what are disadvantages of STV?
more likely to result in minority or coalition government - power sharing prone to conflict and collapse, Northern Ireland executive was suspended several times as a result of a breakdown of trust
complex system - many ballot papers were spoiled in Scotland when it was introduced, results take longer to be announced
six representatives per constituency so lines of accountability are not clear
where is supplementary vote used?
elections for London mayor and other elected mayors
how does supplementary vote work?
voters get a first and second preference, any candidate who gains more than 50% of the votes is automatically elected
if not all candidates except top two are eliminated and second preference votes are added to produce overall winner
what are advantages of SV?
ensures broad support for the winner - Sadie khan, elected mayor of London in 2016 has largest personal mandate of any politician in British history
simple and straight forward to use - no spoiled votes
fewer wasted votes
voter’s first and second choices are relevant
what are disadvantages of SV?
not proportional - one individual is being elected to a single office
no majority needed - winner only needs to beat the other remaining candidate
voters need to vote tactically in order to maximise the value of their vote, they need to identify the likely top two candidates in order to have influence over outcome
why has FPTP survived in Westminster?
outcomes of FPTP suit the interests of the largest parties who have a diminished interest in reforming the system
coalition offered referendum on AV in 2011 but people voted against it because FPTP is familiar and easy to use
why is AMS used in Scotland and Wales?
introduced by labour as a compromise to win acceptance of their devolution plans, libdems and SNP preferred STV
AMS would be broadly representative but not as radical as STV
after it was decided for Scotland it was also used in Wales and Greater London assembly
why is STV used in Northern Ireland?
chosen after good Friday agreement because broadly representative and allows representation of different parties
divisions between unionists and nationalists mean both sides need to have representation and show power in order to avoid non-political (violent) action
had also been used in Republic of Ireland and previously used in Northern Ireland parliament
why is SV used for mayors?
both SV and AV were considered, SV chosen because simpler to use and would give winner a clear mandate because only top two candidates after first preferences contains so candidates with little support less likely to win because ‘lowest common denominator’
what is the impact of electoral systems on parties?
fully or partly proportional systems benefit smaller parties
FPTP benefits larger parties because small parties likely to get low level support across country e.g. UKIP 2015 won 12.5% of vote but one seat, SNP successful because geographically concentrated
smaller parties have vested interest in electora reform but unlikely to achieve because large parties have diminished interest, unsuccessful referendum
what is impact of electoral system on voter choice?
voter choice highest under STV because can choose between different representatives of same party
more proportional systems associated with higher turnout however devolved bodies more proportional but have lower turnout
what are properties associated with proportional electoral systems?
votes worth equal amounts increased voter choice minor party representation coalition/minority government multiple winners in constituencies
what are properties associated with plurality electoral systems?
single party governments
single member constituencies
candidates elected without a majority
one person, one vote for one candidate
what is the impact of electoral systems on type of government?
proportional systems result in coalition or minority governments, common in Scotland, Wales and NI in contrast to Westminster (except 2010 and 2017), however they have proved effective and stable
what is the impact of electoral systems of how governments operate?
more compromise, negotiations between parties common in Scotland, Wales and NI, except majority government in Scotland
when it was minority government, SNP had to win support of other parties in order to pass legislation e.g. 2011 government had to agree to measures to increase youth employment and training when conservatives and libdems claimed their budget didn’t do enough to promote economic recovery
whereas in Westminster parties in adversarial relationship with major opposition party and smaller parties having less influence
