electoral systems Flashcards
the functions of elections
- representation
- legitimacy
- forming a government
- participation
- accountability
- education
- mandate
- free and fair democracy
how do elections ensure representation
the views of the people are taken into account, and priorities are delivered. people who support opposition parties can show their support, alongside dissatisfaction or support with the governing party
how do elections ensure legitimacy
voters giver their consent to the system by voting, and a winning government has the consent of the people to carry out the promises they made in a manifesto.
how do elections allow the formation of a government
the party that gets the most seats is invited by the King to form a government, allowing them to take power in the UK, and proceed with their legislative programme
how do elections ensure participation
elections allow the public to take part in politics, as this is the only participation some people have in politics. In a representative democracy, participation is key, as it helps to give the government consent
how do elections ensure accountability
elected MPs are help accountable by the citizens, who can un-elect them at the next election. Through recall petitions, MPs that break the law/ are suspended from the Commons for a long time can be recalled by their constituents to face a by-election
how do elections ensure education
elections and their campaigns help to educate the public, as parties’ manifestos are published, and many politicians take to the media to convey their promises to the people, allowing for the electorate to make an informed decision about who to vote for (rational choice theory)
how do elections ensure a mandate
mandate- the authority of a winning group/ party following success in an lection, granting permission to make or change legislation in accordance with manifesto pledges and promises, as the public approve of the decisions, on the whole, made by the winning party
how do elections ensure free and fair democracy
elections should be free from external influence, and should allow any candidate to win, provided they have support from the public. In UK elections, a secret ballot is used, and if a voter can be identified by initials/ name, their vote is invalid. It is important for the electoral system to translate the number of votes case to the number of seats won. However, in 2015, UKIP won 13% of votes and 0.2% of seats. Conservatives won 37% of votes and 51% of seats
reasons why elections promote democracy
- they educate the public about political issues of the day
- they ensure peaceful change of governance between parties or groups
- they offer choice to the electorate and allow a wide range of views to be heard
- they allow representatives to be held accountable for their decisions, as an election can result in an MP losing their seat
reasons why elections don’t promote democracy
- elections can fail to educate the public through biased facts and propaganda
- sometimes the winning party does not receive a majority of votes
- there is no guarantee that parties will go through with every manifesto pledge
- there is little to differentiate between parties in today’s politics, and the differences in promises can be seen to discourage people from voting
what electoral system is used in the UK
First Past the Post elects members for Westminster
which other countries have FPTP
India and the USA
what is FPTP
a plurality electoral system, meaning the winning candidate needs only one more vote than second place, and the candidate who receives the highest number of votes wins, even if the candidate receives less than half of the votes.
lowest proportion in FPTP
Belfast South in 2015- the winning SDLP member only received 24.5% of the vote, but gained complete control of the seat, despite over 75% of the constituency not voting for them.
what is a safe seat
there is little chance of the seat changing parties due to the enormous majority one party may have e.g. Labour in Liverpool Wavertree, Conservatives in Christchurch
what is a marginal seat
a very slim majority for the winning party means these seats are very likely to change hands between elections.
the most marginal seat ever
1910 in Exeter- Conservative candidate won by 1 vote
2017 Fife North East- SNP candidate won by 2 votes
how does FPTP work
- UK split into 650 voting areas (constituencies)
- in each election, a candidate pays a deposit to stand for election, which is refunded if they receive more than 5% of the vote
- the electorate cast their vote for one candidate on election day
- voted are counted, candidate with the most votes wins
- for a party to win the election, they must secure 326 or more constituencies. if not, a confidence & supply/ coalition agreement may be made
reasons why FPTP is fit for purpose
- a majority government is more common, as two-party system is more common
- there is a strong constituency-MP link, meaning members can represent their constituents’ views
- it is easy for people to understand
- it is quick, as government is usually formed the day after the election
- it can keep out extreme parties e.g. UKIP/ Reform UK by discriminating against them
reasons why FPTP is not fit for purpose
- governments aren’t usually elected by the majority e.g. Labour won 34% of the vote in 2024, and 63% of seats
- not everybody’s vote is worth the same, as safe seats can make people feel unrepresented
- most MPs aren’t elected with at least 50% of the vote, so they lack legitimacy
- it doesn’t match proportionality of other systems
- smaller parties do not get a chance to shine e.g. Green Party or Reform UK
when has the Supplementary Vote been used
to elect the London Mayor and Police & Crime Commissioners before 2022
how does the Supplementary Vote system work
- voters have one ballot with two preferences, a first and a second choice. voters can vote for both or just one choice, but cannot vote for the same candidate as first and second choice
- once votes have been counted, if a candidate receives over 50% of first preference vote, the candidate wins
- if no candidate receives an overall majority, top two candidates proceed to a second round, all others eliminated
- the first preference votes for the remaining two candidates remain in the final count
- voters’ ballots whose first and second-preferences candidates are eliminated are discarded
- voters whose first preference candidate is eliminated and second preference candidate is in top two have second preference votes added to the count
- winning candidate has the support of a majority of voters who expressed their preference among the top two
what system is SV
a majoritarian system, as candidates must reach a majority of support in order to win, making sure the winning party has a majority of the seats in parliament.
reasons why SV is fit for purpose
- it is simple for the electorate to understand and use
- all MPs have the support of a majority of their constituents
- reduces tactical voting, as you can vote for your favourite candidate alongside one who has a higher chance of winning
- single-member system allows for constituency-MP links, so constituents’ views can be heard
reasons why SVP is not fit for purpose
- voters may need to vote tactically for their vote to ‘count’
- like FPTP, as only two candidates make it to the second round, is collapses down to a two-party system
- since only the top two parties will make it to the second round, smaller parties suffer as they didn’t get enough first preference votes
What is the Additional Member System?
voters have two votes- one for the constituency member, which is selected using FPTP. second is a regional member, using the d’Hondt formula to decide which parties get seats.
how many regions are there is scotland
8
how many regions are there in wales
5
in the AMS system, how many members are allocated per region
7
advantages of the Additional Member System
- proportional vote, reducing wasted votes
- split-ticket voting encourages more parties to run with a better chance of success
- government selected must have some broad popularity
- all people represented by constituency and regional representatives
- wider voter choice
- increased turnout with more incentive
disadvantages of the Additional Member System
- more complicated than FPTP, so can be confusing for voters
- unlikely single-party government, leading to possible coaltion failures
- constituency vote uses FPTP
- different types of representatives can cause tension and confusion around accountability
- party controls order of its list of candidates, allowing party leadership excessive influence
where is AMS used?
Wales and Scotland
what is the Single Transferrable Vote system
- voters rank their favourite candidates
- for candidates to be selected, they must pass formula ((total valid votes/seats available+1)+1)
- excess votes are proportionally given to second preferences
- this continues until all seats are distributed
where is STV used
Northern Ireland and Malta
advantages of the STV q
- votes aren’t wasted, so people feel greater sense of participation
- greater voter choice, as they can vote for more parties or candidates in the same party
- voters can voice their concerns with more than one representative
- safe seats are not ensured
- no need to vote tactically, as all parties have an equal chance of success
disadvantages of STV
- accountability for each member is unclear
- it can take weeks for a government to form and coalitions to be negotiated, delaying a peaceful transfer of power
- some people can be confused over how they vote
- ballot papers can be spoiled if people are unsure about how to vote, limited representativeness
