Electoral systems

Electoral systems

1. Single Transferable Vote (STV)

   • Pros
     • - Close correlation between votes and seats - Voter choice is high - Northern Ireland shows a power-sharing government between rivals
   • - An electoral system where preferences are ranked numerically - In order to win a seat, a candidate must obtain a quota (number of votes) - After the votes are cast, if a candidate meets the quota, their excess votes are transferred to other candidates based on second preference - The candidate with the least number of votes is eliminated and votes redistributed based on next preference - Repeated until all seats are filled
   • Cons
     • - Not fully proportional - Large multi-member constituencies leads to weak constituency/member link - Power sharing governments are still prone to conflict
   • used in
     • - Northern Ireland Assembly - European Parliament Elections - Northern Ireland and Scottish Council Elections

2. First Past the Post (FPTP)

   • - An electoral system, sometimes known as a plurality system - candidate with the largest number of votes is elected - Victory is achieved by having at least one more vote than other contenders
   • Pros
     • - Quick and simple - Provides a strong and stable government (two party system) - Exclusion of extremists - Promotes a strong link between MPs and constituencies
   • Cons
     • - MPs and government don't need majority - Conservatives (David Cameron) house majority with 36.9% of popular vote - UKIP got 12.7% but 1 seat - Lack of proportionality - Limited voter choice - Safe seats leads to unequal votes

3. Additional Member System (AMS)

   • Pros
     • - Introduces a proportional element - Corrects flaws of FPTP - FPTP element maintains a string link between the member and the constituency - Electors have wider choice than under FPTP
   • Cons
     • - Creates two different types of member, some with constituency responsibilities and some without - Smaller parties achieve less representation than under a fully proportional system - Closed list system means there isn't choice of member
   • - A hybrid electoral system - The voter makes two choices - First, the voter selects a representative by FPTP - A second vote is made for a party - Additional members would be elected by these votes - Additional members don't have a constituency
   • used in
     • - Scottish Parliament - Welsh Assembly - Greater London Assembly

4. Supplementary Vote (SV)

   • - A majoritarian electoral system where voters rank first and second choice - If one candidate obtains more than 50% on the first vote, then they are elected - Otherwise, the top two candidates remain and supplementary votes are added - Then, the candidate with the most votes wins
   • Pros
     • - Ensures broad support for the winner - Simple and straight forward to use - Has allowed some independent candidates to win
   • Cons
     • - Not proportional as only one winner - The winner does not need to get an absolute majority of the votes - Voters need to be able to guess top two to influence the outcome

5. Alternative Vote (AV)

   • - Voters rank candidates in order of preference by marking 1, 2, 3 and so on. - A voter can rank as many or as few candidates as they like or vote for one candidate. First preference votes are counted first. - If a candidate receives more than 50 per cent of the first preference votes then they are elected. - If no candidate reaches 50 per cent, the candidate with the fewest first preference votes is eliminated. Their second preference votes are reallocated to the remaining candidates. - If one candidate has more votes than the other remaining candidates put together, that candidate is elected.
   • Pros
     • - enables the votes of several aligned candidates to accumulate, so that diverse but related interests can be combined to win representation. - enables supporters of candidates who have little hope of being elected to influence, via their second and later preferences.
   • Cons
     • - Requires a reasonable degree of literacy and numeracy to be used effectively - produces results that are disproportional when compared to PR systems - It is doubtful if AV would promote accommodatory behaviour in deeply divided societies where ethnic groups are concentrated in particular geographic regions. - It has been found that AV does not work well when applied to larger, multi-member districts.

6. Marginal Seats

   • - Seats held by a small majority - Small swing to an opposition candidate can cause the seat to change hands - E.g. Watford

7. Safe Seats

   • - Constituencies in which the sitting MP has a secure majority - E.g. Newcastle North

8. Electoral Deserts

   • - Areas of the country where a party cannot win seats - E.g. South-East England is a desert for Labour