electoral systems pt1 Flashcards
main features of FPTP
- country divided into constituencies
- each constituency elects MP:
- voters have only 1 vote and put an x next to the name of their favourite candidate
- the winner is the one who gets the most votes - doesn’t have to be over 50%
- this is a PLURALITY SYSTEM
what does plurality mean
- ‘the most votes’
- if a candidate receives a plurality they have won more votes than the other candidates
- they dont have to win ‘absolute majority’ which is 50% of the votes
what are safe seats and marginal seats
safe seat - same party wins the seat every election - not realistic possibility of another party winning a sea
marginal seat - more than one party has a chance of winning a seat
who does FPTP favour and discriminate against
FAVOURS
- parties whose votes are highly concentrated
- fptp based on winning individual constituencies not national vote
DISCRIMINATES
- parties whose votes are thinly spread out throughout the country
- like if they have little support but everywhere eg always the 2nd or 3rd choice they will never win a seat
whats tactical voting
when voters choose a candidate who might not have been their top preferred choice but they vote for them in order to keep the candidate they LEAST want winning - out the picture
6 advantages of FPTP
- CLEAR WINNER - gives one party majority to govern providing clear mandate to carry out policies. EG - Labour won 2024 GE with 411 seats
- CLOSE MP- CONSTITUENCY LINK - each constituency has an MP so voters know who’s representing them EG Jess Phillips MP supported school in Birmingham after homophobic abuse of teacher - strengthens accountability
- ACCOUNTABILITY - MPs directly answerable to local voters, voters can remove MPs if they disagree w actions EG - pro-EU MPs lost seats in 2019 GE after campaigning against results of Brexit
- STOPS EXTREMIST parties from getting seats. EG British National Party won 500k votes in 2010 but no seats
- REFLECTS REGIONAL DIFFERENCES - shows how dif regions support dif parties EG - SNP strong in Scotland, Labour strong in inner cities, Cons strong in rural areas –> gives voices to dif parts of UK strengthening representation
- SIMPLE + easy to understand. voters place X next to preferred name - accessible to all, reduces confusion , encourages turnout - builds trust in system
6 disadvantages of FPTP
- NOT ALWAYS CLEAR WINNER - hung parliament, coalitions or support from smaller parties EG 2010 and 2017 hung parliaments. Cons w Lib Dems 2010-15 with DUP support 2017-19
- DISPROPORTIONAL OUTCOMES - number of seats won doesn’t reflect share of national vote. EG - 2024 reform got 14% national vote but only 5 seats –> not fair and weakens public trust
- WASTED VOTES - votes for losing candidates don’t help anyone and safe seat votes don’t even impact results –> reduces legitimacy
- ELECTORAL DESERTS - some areas dominated by one party and others have no presence or hope of winning and these places become ‘no-go zones’ –> these areas lack choice which weakens representative democracy
- UNEQUAL VALUE OF VOTES - marginal seat votes and more influential than safe seats. EG - 3/4 of votes in 2015 were wasted (Electoral Reform Society) –> violates equal representation - one persons votes count more than others
- ENCOURAGES TACTICAL VOTING - when voters vote for someone so that the one they dont like doesnt win EG - 2017, approx 6.5 mill voted tactically. –> distorts voter turnout which weakens trust in the system
what is a hung parliament
when no party has majority of seats - either a minority government or coalition is formed
what is a minority government
one party makes up government but doesnt have majority of seats. t governs by making deals with other parties to support it on key decisions. this is what Conservatives did between 2017-19 with DUP. these deals are called confidence-and-supply deals
key features of Supplementary voting (majority system)
- voters have 2 choices: first preference and second preference
- if a candidate wins more than 50% of the first-choice votes they are elected and have won
- if no candidate gets 50% then: All but the top 2 candidates are eliminated
- then the second preferences of voters whos first choice was eliminated are reallocated to the top two
- if their second preferences doesnt match either of the top two then their ballot is discarded atp
- then the candidate with the most total votes after this wins
what is Supplementary Vote used for
- electing London Mayors
- regional mayors
- Police and Crime Commissioners
example of Supplementary Vote
2021 London Mayoral Election Example
Sadiq Khan (Labour):
1st round = 40.0%
2nd round = 55.2% ✅
Shaun Bailey (Conservative):
1st round = 35.3%
2nd round = 44.8%
Other candidates:
1st round = 24.7%
All eliminated
- Sadiq Khan won because he gained more second preference votes.
advantages of Supplementary Vote
- greater legitimacy bc winner must have support from over 50%
- encourages candidates to campaign more broadly to win second preference votes bc voters first and second choice votes are counted
- easy to use - only make 2 Xs
disadvantages of Supplementary Vote
- winning candidate might not have a true majority of all votes cast - some voters’ 2nd choices arent counted if neither of top 2 were on their ballot
- promotes a 2 party system as smaller parties have little chance of winning - undermines democracy - majoritarian system
- confusing for voters bc some ppl dont understand how to use the 2nd preference correctly leading to high numbers of spoiled or invalid ballots
where is the Additional Member System (AMS) used
- Scottish parliament
- Welsh parliament
- greater London assembly
how does Additional Member System (AMS) work
voters have 2 votes:
1. vote for a constituency candidate
- uses FPTP and makes up 2/3s of seats
2. party regional list vote
- elects ‘additional members’ from party lists in multi-member regions
- fills the remaining 1/3 of seats
–> seats from the list are allocated using the D’Hondt formula which ensures the result is more proportional: parties that do well in constituencies have list seats adjusted downwards, vise versa
key features and outcomes of Additional Member System (AMS)
- smaller parties can win representation without winning any constituencies EG: UKIP won seats in Welsh Assembly 2016 via list vote
- encourages coalition governments - SNP has governed as minority in Scotland and Labour often forms coalitions in Wales
- creates 2 types of representatives: constituency and regional list
advantages of Additional Member System (AMS)
- proportional outcomes - fairer to all parties
- voters get 2 votes - more choice and flexibility
- combines benefits of constituency representation and proportional fairness
disadvantages of Additional Member System (AMS)
- creates 2 classes of representation - Constituency members vs. regional list members (the latter often seen as less accountable).
- more complex than FPTP - 2 votes can confuse
- can allow extremist parties to gain seats through list system
- more likely to result in minority or coalition governments - ppl argue are less stable
where is the Single Transferable Vote (STV) used
- Northern Ireland Assembly elections
- Scottish local government elections
how does Single Transferable Vote (STV) work
- each constituency has multiple seats
- voters rank candidates in order of preference
- voters can choose candidates from different parties
- each party can stand as many candidates as there are seats
- a quota is used to decide who gets elected
- this quota is calculated by votes / (seats + 1) + 1
- if a candidate reaches the quota from 1st preferences then they are elected
- surplus votes are transferred to 2nd preferences on those ballots
- if no one reaches the quota, the candidate with the fewest 1st choice preferences is eliminated and their votes are redistributed
- this continues until all seats are filled
outcomes of Single Transferable Vote (STV)
- overall result - proportional to first-preference votes
- encourages a muti-party system
- power sharing coalitions are common eg common in northern Ireland
- can result in gridlock - EG Sinn Féin and the DUP failed to form a government between 2017–2020.
- breaks the traditional MP–constituency link, as voters have multiple representatives.
- quite confusing
advantages of Single Transferable Vote (STV)
- simple - just rank candidates
- broadly proportional outcome
- gives voters lots of choice - can vote for dif candidates of the same party
- 6 reps per constituency - voters are likely to find someone they support and are happy with
disadvantages of Single Transferable Vote (STV)
- counting is very complex and slow - bc quotas have to be calculated
- often leads to coalition or minority governments - unstable EG Between 2017 and 2020, Sinn Féin and the DUP were unable to form a government, causing political gridlock.
- allow extremist candidates to be elected
- With multiple representatives per area, accountability is weaker — it’s unclear which representative is responsible for local issues.
