CPS Final - Electoral Rules

Majoritarian electoral systems

One in which the candidates or parties that receive the most votes win (SMDP, SNTV, alternative vote, two-round)

Proportional electoral systems

A quota- or divisor-based electoral system employed in multimember districts

Mixed electoral systems

Voters elect representatives through two different systems, one majoritarian and one proportional

Electoral threshold

Minimum level of support a party needs to obtain legislative representation

Single-member district plurality (SMDP)

System with one legislative seat per district, where an individual casts only one vote, and where candidate with the most votes (majority or plurality) wins

Single nontransferable vote (SNTV)

System where voters cast one vote in a multi-member district → candidates w/ most votes get the seats; in 3-seat district, top 3 candidates will get the seats

The Alternative Vote

Preferential voting system w/ single-member districts, where voters rank one or more candidates (or parties); candidate w/ absolute majority is elected

Two-round systems

Voters cast one vote, but if no candidate receives a specified number of votes, top two candidates compete against each other in a second round

Majority-runoff two-round systems

System where voters cast a single candidate-centered vote in a single-member district; If no one obtains an absolute majority, then the top two vote winners go on to compete in a runoff election in the second round

Majority-plurality two-round systems

If no majority in the first round, candidates who receive votes above a threshold go on to the second round and the candidate with the most votes in second round wins

Proportional Representation Systems

Want to represent as many people as possible

List proportional representation

Parties present list of candidates → receive seats in proportion to their share of the votes; seats then distributed among candidates on the list

Quotas

Determine the price of a seat in terms of votes

Divisors

Total number of votes won by each party is divided by a series of numbers to obtain quotients

Single transferable vote (STV)

Candidate-centered system in multimember districts where voters rank order the candidates; voters must reach a quota

Supplementary vote (SV)

Candidate-centered system used in single-member districts → voters required to rank at least one and at most two candidates in order of preference; candidate w/ absolute majority wins

Hare quota

n = 0

Hagenbach-Bischoff quota

n = 1

Imperiali quota

n = 2

Reinforced Imperiali quota

n = 3

Droop quota

Hagenbach-Bischoff + 1 with any “decimal part” removed

Boix (1999)

in W.Europe, the threat of socialism threatened existing parties b/c newly mobilized working class placed new demands for political representation and extension of the franchise