Single Transferable Vote (STV) Flashcards
what is STV?
Single transferable vote STV is a proportional electoral system
The preferred system of the electoral reform Society
where is STV used?
Northern Ireland assembly elections
North Ireland local government elections
European Parliament elections (In Northern Ireland)
Scottish Council elections
how does STV work?
Uses multimember constituencies (in Northern Ireland there are 18 constituencies each returning five members)
voters rank the candidates in order of preference
Parties can put forward as many candidates as there are seats
To be elected a candidate must achieve a quota of votes which is calculated by the Droop formula (number of votes cast over number of seats contested +1) — when the quota is reached they are automatically elected
If the elected candidate goes above the quota then the surplus votes are re-distributed to the second choices/preferences of those who voted for that candidate
If no one reaches the quota the least popular candidate is eliminated and all of those votes are re-distributed to the 2nd choices of those who voted for that eliminated candidate
This is repeated until enough candidates reach the quota and all seats are filled
advantages: PROPORTIONAL
Very close correlation between votes and seats awarded, more so than FPTP and more fair as a result
For example in the 2016 Northern Ireland assembly elections Sinn Fein won 24% of the vote and 23% of the seats
Helps smaller parties that are under represented under first past the post achieve a fairer amount of seats that reflect the support they have
For example in the 2016 Northern Ireland elections the Green party won 2.7% of the vote and 1.9% of the seats
If STV was used in 2015 the Liberal Democrats would’ve received 26 seats but under first past the post they only got 8, which did not reflect the amount of votes that they had won across the country
Higher level of proportional representation, especially for smaller parties
advantages: VERY WIDE RANGE OF CHOICE
range of choices, Not only between parties but also between candidates from the same party
Choice between different wings and factions of the party As multiple candidates from the same party are up for election
There will always be someone that will appeal to people and someone that people want to be represented by
Reduces tactical voting — voters can rank people who they genuinely want in power rather than voting tactically to prevent someone they dislike from getting into power
This also encourages more competition between candidates and parties meaning they work harder to appeal to voters and address their concerns as there are no safe seats
There are no safe seats so candidates have to work harder for votes have to address concerns of their constituents where is FP TP encourages focus on marginal seats at the expense of others
The absence of safe seats on the STV makes candidates work harder for votes so that they have to address concerns across the whole of the constituency while FP TP encourages parties to focus on key marginal seats at the expense of others
advantages: ENDED VIOLENCE IN NORTHERN IRELAND
ended 30 years of violent disturbance in Northern Ireland by creating a power-sharing government that enables representatives from two rival communities (the unionists and nationalists) to work together
However it has not completely ended conflict
For example the Northern Ireland executive was suspended several times including for almost 5 years in 2002 to 2007 due to a breakdown of trust
cooperation between parties also broke down again in early 2017, triggering further elections
advantages: NO WASTED VOTES
If your first vote is not for the elected candidate then your second vote will be used and so on
votes are always re-distributed
disadvantages: NOT TOTALLY PROPORTIONAL
Especially in smaller constituencies
disadvantages: WEAK LINKS
weaker links between representatives and constituencies
Link between members and voters may be weak in larger constituencies as they are too large for representatives to know well
A limitation of STV is that the link between constituencies and MPs maybe weaker than under FPTP, especially in large constituencies which are often too large for representatives to know well
disadvantages: COMPLICATED
Quite a complicated system hard to understand and takes longer to reach a result, thus delaying the formation of a government
Could result in a skewed vote as the complicated nature means that people may vote for their preferred candidate and simply randomly rank the others or just write numbers down as they appear on the ballot (donkey voting)
disadvantages: COALITIONS
Higher chance of a coalition or minority government
Less likely for a strong and stable government
a coalition could be unstable — however it could encourage a more consensual style of government
disadvantages: DIVISIVE
Divisive between multiple members of the same party running for a position
do the advantages of STV outweigh the disadvantages?
The creation of a possibly weaker government under STV may be a price worth paying for the advantages offered by the system
Not only is the outcome more fair and representative, especially for small parties, but there is a much wider choice of candidates and parties
this could encourage higher participation because voters will be encouraged to find out about the candidates running for each position
There are some disadvantages but the advantages seem to outweigh these
Furthermore a coalition government does not have to be a negative thing it can encourage a more consensual style of government
why was STV adopted for the Northern Ireland Assembly?
STV was chosen for Northern Ireland after the 1998 Good Friday agreement because it is a highly proportional system, likely to ensure the broadest possible representation of different parties and rival communities
due to the background of conflict between unionists and nationalists communities in Northern Ireland, it was important to avoid single party domination which could have derailed the fragile peace process
the use of STV ensures that governments are power-sharing bodies drawn from both sides of the divide
STV was already in use in the Republic of Ireland and had been used previously in Northern Ireland between the 1920s and 70s — it already has roots in the province
