Additional Member System

Additional Member System

1. What is it?

   • Used in the Scottish Parliamentary elections and the Welsh Assembly elections
   • AMS is a hybrid voting system. It combines elements of PR and FPTP where voters mark an X next to the candidate they want to represent them in their constituency, and proportional representation, where voters select from a list of candidates for each party who represent a larger regional constituency. This helps to overcome the disproportionality associated with FPTP
   • Under AMS, each voter gets two votes- one for a candidate (FPTP) and one for a party (Regional List)

2. Advantages

   • It is broadly proportional. Parties which won fewer constituencies than was merited by their share of the vote gain extra regional seats. An example of this is the Conservations in Scotland. They did not win any constituency MSPs in 1999, but they did gain 18 regional MSPs
   • Each voter has a directly accountable single constituency representative
   • Every voter has at least one effective vote
   • It allows a voter to express personal support for a candidate, without having to worry about going against their party

3. Disadvantages

   • Many representatives (the ones elected in the regions by the Regional List system) are accountable to the party leadership rather than the voters
   • Having two different types of representative creates animosity between them. In Wales and Scotland, for example, Ams and MSPs elected via the regional lists have been seen as having 'got in via the backdoor' or as 'assisted place' or 'second class' members
   • It can be complicated, with people getting confused over exactly what they're supposed to do with their two votes