UK POLITICS - Electoral systems Flashcards
Is FPTP pluralist or majoritarian? Why?
Pluralist: an MP does not need an ‘absolute majority’ ( >50%) to win the seat.
Define a ‘safe seat’
A seat that has no realistic possibility of being won by any other than one party
Define a marginal or ‘swing seat’
Any seat that has a realitic possibility of voting for one of multiple parties
Why is FPTP considered a two-party system?
Smaller parties have little to no chance of winning any seats even if they have widespread support
[FPTP] Which constituency did the SNP win in by only 2 votes in 2017?
North-East Fife
[FPTP] What was Labour’s winning margin in Lewisham Deptford in 2019?
33,000
Give five features of FPTP elections
- A two-party system
- A winner’s bonus
- Bias to major parties
- Discrimination against third and smaller parties
- Single-party government
[FPTP] What percentage of people voted LibDem in 2019 and how how many seats did they get?
11.5% and only 11 seats
What is a ‘winner’s bonus’ as a feature of FPTP?
Where a relatively small lead over the second-place party translates to a substantial lead in parliament
What percentage of the vote and seats did Blair get in 1997?
63% of seats
43% of votes
Define tactical voting
Tactical voting: voters who believe in smaller parties’ manifestos may vote for major parties because they have a higher chance of winning
What was Green’s and Conservatives’ votes per MP in the 2024 General Election?
450,000 votes per Green MP
55,000 votes per Conservative MP
Why is FPTP considered to make stable and cohesive governments? Give a criticism of this theory.
Large majority (due to winner’s bonus and favour of large parties) means an easier time passing legislation and governing with little scrutiny, Brown and 2008
- Unchecked power and lack of scrutiny leads to instability, see Blair and Iraq; smaller majorities may lead to greatre scrutiny, such as under May and the largest losing margin in history
Why is FPTP considered unrepresentative? Give a criticism of this theory.
Winner’s bonus and a pluralist system leads to majorities that doesn’t represent the will of the people - Churchill gets a majority in 1951 despite having 1% less votes than Labour
- Any system is disproportional due to tactical voting - 1/3 of voters tactically voted in 2024
How does FPTP create a strong MP-constituency link? Give a criticism of this.
The one MP representation gives constituents a clear idea of who represents them, who to talk to if they have an issue (redress of grievance), and who is accountable to them.
- Given the un proportional nature of FPTP, many people don’t view that MP as ‘their’ MP so have weaker links to them compared to a system like AV - 70% of votes were ignored in 2024
How does FPTP keep out extremist parties? Give a criticism of this.
Radical parties struggle to gain traction due to unconcentrated support and due to the belief they won’t gain power- ReformUK had 14% of voted but 1% of seats
- This affects all smaller parties and discourages any non-centrist policy - Greens had 9x more Votes per MP than Conservatives in 2024
- They still have an effect on politics - UKIP and BREXIT
Where is FPTP used?
General elections
Where is AMS used?
Scottish and Welsh Parliaments, the Greater London Assembly
How does AMS work?
One vote is given for a constituency representative and one is given for a party. Each constituency gets a representative but the number of total representatives is adjusted to be more in line with party vote, with some representative being for a party rather than a constituency.
How did AMS prevent an SNP landslide in 2016 in Scottish Parliament?
SNP won 59 out of 63 constituency seats and would have had 93% of seats had AMS not given Lab and Con 55 more seats in total leaving the SNP with only 48.8% of the total seats.
[AMS] What factor was Plaid Cymru’s seats multiplied by in the 2021 elections in Welsh Parliament?
5-13
2.6x
How does AMS give voters more choice? Give a criticism.
Two votes gives voters the choice to vote for who they want representing their constituency but also vote for the party they believe in.
- many voters may become confused by the two choices (may have been the cause of the 2024 45% turnout to Welsh Parliament elections)
How does AMS assist smaller parties? Give a criticism.
The regional vote gives seats to parties whose voters are more spread out across the country - 55% of parties running in the 2021 Scottish elections were entirely new
- May elect extremist parties. However, the most extreme party to be elected was Reform who have one seat in the London Assembly. Additionally, its undemocratic to stop them
- Does it? LabCon still carry 55% of seats on average in all 3 chambers
How is the mixed character of AMS beneficial? Give a criticism.
By drawing on both FPTP and proportional representation, AMS balances the need for constituency representation and electoral fairness - 70% of FPTP votes discarded in 2024
- regional representatives are unaccountable to a constituency - for groups like LabCon in Scotland, this can be up to 80% of their seats
Where is STV used?
Northern Irish Assemblies and local governments
What is the Droop formula for the STV quota?
Quota = ((total number of votes cast)/(number of seats to fill +1)) + 1
If there are 6 seats in a constituency, how many candidates does STV let parties put up?
6
How do you vote under STV?
You number the candidates, 1 being most preferable
Does STV result in strong, stable governments? Why?
No, no party in Stormont has more than 30% of seats currently. This is because it was created shortly after the Troubles so Westminster wished to avoid a rebellion.
What is the issue with STV voting ballots?
Due to how complicated and different they are from FPTP ballots, many end up being ‘spoilt’ or ‘donkey’ ballots as people have marked them incorrectly. The 2022 Stormont election recieved 3x more than the 2022 general elections, as a proportion of the overall votes
How many invalid STV ballots was there in the 2022 Stormont election?
11,000
Give an example of STV being proportional. Give a criticism of this.
The average percentage difference between the votes and seats allotted in the Stormont election 2022 was 1.377%.
- This proportionality comes at the cost of a strong and cohesive government - the current executive has 4 seperate parties in it with Sinn Fein with the most at 5
Why could it be argued that STV produces both more and less wasted ballots?
More: due to the complexity and difference to FPTP, many ballots are placed incorrectly and are not counted
Less: given that, in some way, everyone votes for the successful candidates - their ballots are not wasted like in FPTP and all candidates have a level of legitimacy.
[STV] Why could a multi-member constituency and executive be favourable?
By having multiple parties working together, you can promote more collaborative and consensual policy making and multiple people can use different specialties to cater to a diverse range of local issues. This is the same approach for the executive.
[STV] Why could a multi-member constituency and executive not be favourable?
Multiple members may lead to infighting and chaos as people may not know who to go to and each is incentivised to sabotage those from other parties. It also may lead to gridlock in the executive.
Where is SV used?
Used to be all mayoral elections and in elections for police and crime commissioners. Now it is only the latter.
How does SV work?
Voters give their first and second choice. The top two candidates stay and all those that voted for them as their second choice are transferred and whoever has more is elected.
[SV] According to the ERS, how many London Mayors have actually gotten more than 50% of the vote in 20 years? Why
Only 1: Sadie Khan in 2016. This is because ‘non-transferable votes’ are excluded.
Give evidence that SV discriminates against 3rd party candidates.
Independent Ken Livingstone is the only London mayor to have not been from LabCon, in 2000-2008.
What is the average turnout to Police and Crime Commissioner Contests?
27.3%
What is the reason for 80% of disqualified SV ballots?
No second preference recoded.
How many wasted ballots was there in the 2021 London Mayoral elections?
214,000
How does SV lead to more and less wasted votes?
More: the complex and foreign system of voting can lead many to fill the ballot incorrectly and those who don’t vote for the top two candidates are entirely excluded - 214,000 wasted in 2021.
Less: the use of a second choice means that less votes are wasted on smaller parties with less likelihood of winning - 277000 votes transferred in 2021.
How does SV discourage extremism, giving an example? How might this affect smaller parties?
Extremist views are less likely to gain first preference votes so moderate views (that will attract more FP votes) are incentivised. Reclaim only gained 1.9% of the vote in 2019.
- Smaller parties with ideas of reform are less likely to get first Preference votes so will not get to the second round, every single mayor (except Livingston) has been LabCon
How does SV legitimate Mayoral decisions? Give a criticism.
SV is designed to require more than half the vote (whether first or second vote) so it is believed that the decisions are legitimate because they have the permission of an absolute majority of the people - Khan won 55% of second round votes
- In reality, only one Mayor has ever been voted in with more than 50% of the votes (Sadiq Khan) due to the volume of wasted votes.
- Even if we ignore that, 45% of second round votes are being ignored
Define a referendum.
A device of direct democracies where the electors can vote to express their view on a particular issue of public policy.
When did referendums become commonplace in the UK and by who?
Blair’s New Labour in 1997.
What percentage of MPs were Remainers and yet what percent voted to trigger Article 50 to leave? Why?
80% Remainers, 77% voted to trigger Article 50.
This is because referendums have popular sovereignty which means parliament is very unlikely to ignore the result of one.
Give 4 reasons to hold a referendum, giving an example for each.
- Issue at hand is so crucial, direct consent is required (Good Friday Agreement 1998)
- Issue cuts across party lines (Brexit 2016)
- Conflict within the wider community (Good Friday Agreement 1998)
- Proposed constitutional reform (Extension of devolution to Wales 2011)
Give the referendums with the highest and lowest turnouts.
Highest: Good Friday Agreement 1998: 81%
Lowest: Should London have an elected mayor and assembly 1998: 33%.
What referendum was acted on with the highest percentage of the electorate’s vote?
Good Friday Agreement 1998
81% turnout X 71% Yes = 57.51% of electorate
What referendum was acted on with the lowest percentage of the electorate’s vote?
Extension of law-making powers to Welsh Assembly 2011
35% turnout X 64% Yes = 22.4% of electorate
Why do governments usually call referendums?
Normally, governments use referendums to secure direct consent for their major policies. New Labour’s Devolution to Scotland, Wales and NI in the late 1990’s.
Why can referendums hurt governments?
It is a sever blow to a government’s authority if they are on the losing side of a referendum - David Cameron resigned after supporting Remain the Brexit Referendum.
What was the effect of Brexit on Scottish Independence?
Because the UK left the EU but Scotland was 62% remain, there were renewed demands for Scottish independence given the clear diversion of aims.
How can the use of referendums be used to resolve long standing disputes? Give a criticism.
By directly asking the electorate, the government can conclusively decide on the merit of policies - the decisive rejection of AV replacing FPTP for general elections kicked the conversation into the long grass.
- governments can keep asking the same question until they get the answer they want - referendums of devolution to Wales and Scotland have been held 4 times (1979 and 1997)
How are referendums positive for public political education? Give a criticism.
Media coverage and the direct consequences of referendums encourages voters to become more aware of the problem and referendum discusses
- Media coverage is filled with misleading and oversimplified information that may make members of the electorate not vote in their best interest (Fishers, Brexit and the CFP)
According to the Reuters institute, how many articles about Brexit were published daily by 9 major newspapers between February and June?
42 daily
How can referendums make governments both more and less accountable to the people?
More: referendums have popular sovereignty so are hard for the government to ignore even if they disagree with it - Cameron had to step down after the Brexit referendum due to being a Remainer.
Less: the government chooses when to call a referendum and rarely does so if they think it will go against them, additionally they can use public funds to fudge the results - £9 million of taxpayer money for a leaflet on the benefits of staying in the EU.
How can referendums be a tool of populism?
As we saw in Brexit, referenda are very frequently manipulate by politicans that misinform the public to gain their intended result, Atlee called it “the instrument of Nazism and fascism.”
