Politics Electoral Systems

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3.1 Functions of electoral system

  • Representation. A representative is chosen to take decisions on the behalf of the community. They also have a level of autonomy - freedom to think independently. They are not merely delegates, according to the Burkean Theory.
  • Choosing the government. Voters choose a government and grant it legitimacy. The party that wins the most seats form a government, lead by their leader.
  • Holding a government to account. Voters have the right to reject an unpopular government, which must seek a renewal of its mandate to govern every 5 years at least, according to the 2011 Fixed Term Parliaments Act.
  • Participation. People can take part in politics by voting, after reading party's manifestos and making a judgement - thus choosing their representatives in our democracy.
  • Influence over policy. Although voters have little real influence over parties' policies, election defeats show that party that their policies may be unpopular. For example, this is why Labour moved towards the middle ground over the 1980s and 1990s.
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3.1 Criteria of a good electoral system

  • A fair result that gives equal value to people's votes across the country.
  • A choice of candidates.
  • An effective link between the elected representatives and the constituency.
  • A strong government that can pass laws.
  • A government that can be held to account by the electorate.
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3.1 Additional Member System

AMS is hybrid system, combining elements of FPTP and proportional representation. It is used in Scottish parliament, the Welsh Assembly and Greater London Assembly.

Voters make two choices: they select a constituency representative in a simple plurality, FPTP system, and they vote for a party, not candidate, on a party list for an additional or 'top-up' representative, using proportional representation. There are always fewer top-up party list members: 20/60 in Wales and 11/25 in London. They have four year terms.

Advantages:

  • The top-up votes introduce an element of proportional representation, offsetting the FPTP part (calculated using the d'Hondt Formula).
  • Wider choice of candidates; can use a 'split-ticket' where the constituency vote goes to one party and the top-up vote to another.

Disadvantages:

  • Smaller parties still recieve less representation than in a fully proportional system. For example, SNP have been the dominant party in Scotland since 2007.
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3.1 Supplementary Vote

SV is a majoritarian system where voters put a first and second preference. If a candidate recieves more than 50% of first preference votes, they are elected; if not, than all candidates except the top two are eliminated and second preference votes for these two candidates are added to their scores to produce an overall winner. This is used for the London Mayoral elections and Police and Crime Commissioners in England and Wales.

Advantages:

  • Gives the winner broad support; in May 2016 Sadiq Khan was elected Mayor of London with the largest personal mandate of any elected politician in British history.
  • Allowed independent candidates to gain representation; for example 12/40 police and crime commissioners were independents in 2012.

Disadvantages:

  • Not very proportional; winner does not need an absolute majority of votes. For example in the 2016 Police and Crime Commissioners election, UKIP won 13.7% of votes (the third highest) but no seats.
  • Still usually only two candidates with a realistic chance.
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3.2 Referendums

Referendum: A vote by the electorate on a major issue, usually with a yes or no response.

Parliament is sovereign so can reject the outcome of a referendum, but it is highly unlikely they would, as the result represents the will of the people.

The first referendum in the UK was in 1973, when Northern Ireland voted to remain in the UK. The first national UK-wide referendum was held by Labour's Harold Wilson in 1975, when the UK voted to stay in the European Economic Community.

Since 1997, when Blair held regional referendums on whether to devolve powers to Scotland and Wales, it is expected that the prime minister will consult the public directly through a referendum on major constitutional changes.

Since 2000, the Electoral Commission regulates the wording of referendum questions and expenditure by rival campaign groups.

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3.2 Reasons to hold a referendum

  • To legitimise a major government initiative. This is particularly for potentially irreversible constitutional change. Scotland's devolution was legitimised by a referendum in Sept 1997, for which the turnout was 60.4% and 'yes' to devolution won by 74.3%. However, the Welsh devolution referendum at the same time won by only 50.3% to 49.7%, with the turnout at just 50.1% - this gave the government a weaker mandate.
  • To get a government out of a difficult situation. A government may resolve internal disagreement by holding a referendum; insisting members of the party rally behind the will of the people is a more powerful way of creating unity within a party then simply by obeying their leader. For example, both Wilson's 1975 EEC referendum and Cameron's 2016 Brexit one were partly to resolve internal struggles.
  • A result of a deal between political parties. For example, part of the coalition agreement between the Conservatives and Lib Dems in 2010 was for a referendum on electoral reform to be held the following year, with Lib Dems conceding to AV not STV.
  • In response to pressure to hold a referendum. For example, Cameron held the Brexit referendum to defuse opposition from UKIP in the 2015 GE, although this backfired when his side lost and he resigned.
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