electoral systems

Question 1

what is fptp?

Answer 1

simple plurality system where the candidate with the most votes is elected, and they represent a constituency, making decisions on behalf of the citizens

Question 2

where is fptp used?

Answer 2

uk general elections

Question 3

how does fptp work?

Answer 3

• voters cast one vote for their preferred candidate, candidate with the largest number of votes in a constituency is elected
• there are 650 constituencies
• the party with the most seats can form a government

Question 4

advantages of fptp

Answer 4

• often leads to a strong government with a clear mandate due to a clear majority (exceptions such as 2010 where Conservative and Labour virtually tied)
• fptp gives voters a clear choice, 2 party system
  -> 1997 - Tony Blair carried out constitutional reforms after a landslide victory of 418 seats
• provides strong constituency links and representation - average constituency size is 72,000
• MPs hold surgeries to listen to their citizen’s needs and offer advice
• simple and easy for voters to understand

Question 5

disadvantages of fptp

Answer 5

• not a proportional system, benefits parties with geographically concentrated support
• limited choice for some voters as many seats are safe seats
  -> When Theresa May was an MP, her constituency Maidenhead was a safe seat with Conservatives winning over 60% of the vote in 2017
• people voting other parties may feel as though their vote is wasted
  -> 2017 - North East Fife Constituency saw 67% of votes wasted on losing candidates as SNP won by only 2 votes!
• often results in governments being elected with the minority of the votes, results in weak mandate and limited legitimacy
  -> 2019 - conservatives won 365 seats with only 42.3% of the vote

Question 6

what is single transferable vote (STV)?

Answer 6

• divides a country into multi-member constituencies
• voters receive a ballot with many candidates, often multiple from the same party, and rank them in order of preference
• candidates require a certain quota to be elected, calculated by the droop formula
• if no candidate reaches the quota on the first round of voting, the candidate with the lowest number of votes is eliminated and the second preference of voters supporting them is redistributed

Question 7

what is the droop
formula?

Answer 7

(number of seats contested in the constituency +1) +1

Question 8

advantages of STV

Answer 8

• offers large choice of candidates and parties to voters
  -> 2017 - NI assembly election, Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) had 3 candidates and Alliance had 2 candidates in one constituency
• encourages positive campaigning because candidates wish to gain transferred votes from other candidates
• vote share is highly proportional to seats

Question 9

disadvantages of STV

Answer 9

• link between members and voters can be weak because there are many members representing the same constituents
• voting system is more complicated than FPTP and takes longer to reach a result
• donkey voting can take place (voters rank candidates in order they appear rather than preference)

Question 10

FPTP vs. STV

Answer 10

• FPTP produces govt with stronger mandate
• STV -> coalition and minority govts more likely
• FPTP can result in coalition govts and minority govts, but less likely
• FPTP more limited choice
• STV more proportional, FPTP requires geographically concentrated votes
• FPTP stronger constituency link with MPs as constituencies are smaller and only have one MP
  -> STV has 5 members representing each constituency in NI assembly

Question 12

what is additional member system (AMS)?

Answer 12

• used for scottish parliament + welsh and greater london assemblies
• voters have 2 votes - one for their constituency representative using FPTP and the second vote for a ‘party list’
• party list uses multi-member regional constituencies and a party’s list of candidates is published before the election
• after FPTP part counted, additional members added based on party list votes

Question 14

advantages of AMS

Answer 14

• ensures strong constituency link with MPs
• proportional element through proportionally assigning seats to parties from the lists based on the number of votes for each party
• gives voters more choice

Question 15

disadvantages of AMS

Answer 15

• smaller parties are less well represented than in an entirely proportional system because party list only advantages bigger parties
  -> small number of top up seats in wales which favour labour
• party list candidates have less legitimacy
• lacks democratic transparency as the party decides who goes on the list

Question 16

what is supplementary vote (SV)?

Answer 16

• used for london mayoral elections and to elect police and crime commissioners in england and wales
• voter has a first and second preference vote with a candidate elected for winning more than 50% of first preference votes
• if no candidates win first preference vote; all candidates are eliminated except the top two who will have second preference votes allocated to decide the winner

Question 17

advantages of SV

Answer 17

• simple system
• stops candidates winning through a small level of support (tyranny of the majority) and encourages positive campaigning
  -> sadiq khan won 2016 london mayor election by 56.8%

Question 18

disadvantages of SV

Answer 18

• votes can be wasted because voters only choose two candidates and many votes can be excluded from the final count if their top two candidates are eliminated
• not proportional to the wishes of a region
  -winning candidate doesnt require absolute majority

Question 19

electoral systems impact on coalition governments

Answer 19

• STV and AMS increased number of coalition
  governments in NI, Scotland and Wales
  -> AMS brought about a Scottish Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition in Scotland in 1999 and 2003, which removed tuition fees for uni students and introduced free nursing care for the elderly)
• FPTP usually results in stronger government

Question 20

electoral systems impact on minority governments

Answer 20

• proportional systems encourage more negotiations between political parties, so minority govts not all bad?
• minority govts require support from other parties
  -> AMS has led to SNP minority govt from 2007-2011 and in 2016 election

Question 21

electoral systems impact on voter choice

Answer 21

• proportional systems such as AMS and STV give more choice to voters
• FPTP less choice

Question 22

electoral systems impact on party representation

Answer 22

• proportional systems better represent smaller parties and are not affected by vote distribution
• FPTP areas are less successful if less concentrated votes