Electoral Systems

Where is AMS used in the UK?

Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, London Assembly

Where is STV used in the UK?

Northern Ireland assembly, Scottish council

Why is SV no longer used in the UK?

SV = Supplementary Vote

Changed to FPTP by 2022 Elections Act

Was used for PCC, Mayor of London and Metro Mayor elections

AV Referendum

2011 - No 68% Turnout 42%

Accountability

Holding political officials to account for their actions during their time in office

Mandate

The authority to act on behalf of the electorate since they voted for the candidate/party

Legitimacy

The rightful holding of political authority, usually through winning a free and fair election

Purposes of elections (C.A.L.L.D)

Choosing government

Accountability

Legitimacy

Limiting power of elected reps

Developing policy

Majoritarian meaning and system

Majority needed to win - usually produces two party system.

Supplementary Vote

Plurality meaning and system

Having more votes than anyone else but not necessarily a majority, no majority required to win a seat - usually produces two party system.

First-past-the-post

Proportional meaning and system

Seats are allocated reflecting the percentage of votes gained by a party - likely to produce a multiparty system

Additional member system, single transferable vote

How many constituencies are there in the UK?

Explain single member constituency.

650

A constituency represented by just one individual

Effects of FPTP

Two-Party System

Winners Bonus

Strong, Single Party Government

Safe Seats & Swing Seats

FPTP - Winner's Bonus

In FPTP the winning party is typically over-rewarded.

2024 Labour gained 33.7% national vote but 63.2% seats.

When has FPTP not delivered a strong single-party govt?

2010 Conservative and Lib Dem coalition

2017 confidence and supply agreement between Conservatives and DUP

'A nail in the coffin'

Electoral Reform Society described 2015 election in this way due to the system's exclusion of smaller parties

Combined vote share Labour and Conservative 2024 election

57.4% - lowest combined vote share, other parties gaining over 40%, public disillusionment with two main parties

Advantages of FPTP (Ms C's)

MP-constituency link

Simplicity

Centrist policies

Strong government

Disadvantages of FPTP (D.U.L.L)

Disproportionate result

Unequal vote value

Lack of Voter choice

Lack of majority

2015 UKIP

12.6% of the vote and 1 seat

Additional Member System

Hybrid of simple plurality and PR voting - voters cast a vote for a representative and for a political party (regional)

d'Hondt formula

A mathematical formula used in the List System to distribute seats proportionately

Advantages of AMS (PEGGS)

Proportional outcome

Encourages party cooperation

Greater representation

Government must have broad popularity

Split-ticket voting

Disadvantages of AMS (Mc Cow)

More complicated

Constituency has FPTP disadvantages

Creates tension between constituency and regional MSPs

Outcome not what the electorate wants

Weaker government (coalition more likely)

Example of AMS causing an unfavourable outcome

2021 Scottish Parliament elections - Anas Sarwar lost constituency vote to Sturgeon, still able to get into parliament since high up on the Labour Party list.

Single Transferable Vote

Voters rank candidates and a candidate has to meet the droop quota in order to win, the remaining votes are redistributed to the voters next choice.

Ordinal Voting

A vote cast in which the voter marks their candidates in order of preference

Effects of STV

Multiparty system likely

Coalition government likely

Parties have to agree on what they will govern

Fewer safe seats

Advantages of STV

Proportional Result

More choice

Greater representation (more likely to have a representative share their ideology/beliefs)

Disadvantages of STV

More complicated

An unlikely single-party government

Constituency link is weaker due to no local reps

Supplementary Vote

Majoritarian electoral system, voters have a first and second choice vote.

The first choice ballots are counted, if anyone has a majority they win the election.

If there is no majority: all but the top two candidates are eliminated, the eliminated candidate’s second choice votes are redistributed (if both votes on a ballot were for eliminated candidates they are ignored).

The person with a majority after votes are redistributed wins.

2016 Mayoral Election turnout and votes

Turnout 45%

Nearly 400k voters expressed no second choice so their vote was less influential

Effects of SV

Likely to produce two-party system

Strong single-party government

Advantages of SV

Majority result

Voter choice

Simple system

Disadvantages of SV

Two-party dominance

A false majority

Wasted votes

Argument against AMS: small parties overrepresented

2007 SNP won 47 and Labour 46, SNP agreed with Green (2 seats) to form a minority govt. - small parties become 'king members', can exert power far beyond their electoral success suggests

2017 Labour & Conservative vote share

82.4% (highest since 1970)

FPTP SHOULD be replaced for UK general elections (SLIMD)

Some governments lack legitimacy

Lack of true competition

Inequality in voter value

Many votes are wasted

Doesn't always supply a strong single-party government

FPTP SHOULD NOT be replaced for UK general elections (S.C.U.M.P)

Smaller parties can do well (2015 SNP)

Clear 2-party choice easier to hold to account

Understood by the public

Most govts strong and stable

PR systems weaken rep-voter link

Referendum

A 'yes'/'no' vote offered to the public on a single issue.

When have referendums been used (since 2000)?

Welsh Assembly more power

AV Ref

Scotland Indyref

Brexit

Why are referendums called?

Public pressure (2014 Indyref)

Resolve issues dividing a party (2016 Brexit)

Part of an agreement between parties (2011 AV)

Legitimacy to constitutional change

Creating a Scottish Parliament

1997

60% turnout

74% yes

Creating a Welsh Parliament results

1997

50% turnout

50.3% yes

Approving the Good Friday agreement results

1998

81% turnout

71.1% yes

Creating an elected mayor

1998

34.0% turnout

72% yes

Primary legislative powers for Wales referendum

2011

35.6% turnout

63.5% yes

AV Referendum outcome

2011

42% turnout

68% no

Scottish Independence

2014

84% turnout

55% no

Leave or remain EU

2016

72% turnout

51% leave

Consequences of referendums

Parliamentary sovereignty means not legally binding

Campaigns may be untruthful

Public expectation of more referendums

Increased reliance on direct democracy

Public expectation of more referendums

Following Brexit during 2018-19 public pressure mounted for another referendum

Referendums are good for the UK (P.E.A.L)

Popular sovereignty directly expressed

Encourages participation

Advisory, sovereignty not undermined

Liberal democracy through limiting government

Referendums are bad for the UK (C.L.U.M.P.I)

Close results are divisive

Low turnout means illegitimate decisions

Undermines representative democracy

Misleading campaigns

Parliamentary sovereignty undermined

Issues more complex than yes/no

STV leading to unpeaceful power sharing in NI Assembly

Assembly has been suspended on 6 occasions, recently 2022- Feb 2024

STV means power can be shared between unionists and nationalists

2017 Northern Ireland Assembly elections - staunchly unionist constituency of North Antrim was represented by 4 unionists and 1 nationalist representatives

STV leads to power sharing bodies (pluralisn)

after 2022 Scottish council elections, 94% of councils had no overall control

Safe seat example under FPTP

Maidenhead constituency was held by tories since 1835 before boundary change in 2024

Example of AMS not being proportional

Smaller assemblies may not have enough seats for the 'topping up' to correct proportional representation eg. 2021 Senedd election, Green Party got 1.6% of constituency votes and 4.4% of the top up votes but 0 seats

Examples of AMS providing proportional results

2021 Scottish Parliament election - Greens won only just 1.29% of constituency votes, but 8.12% of the top up votes and got 8 seats

Example of tactical voting under FPTP

YouGov poll, 1/5 voters states they would vote tactically in the 2024 election

Example of FPTP favouring geographical concentration and disadvantaging geographically spread votes

SNP benefit greatly from their geographical concentration- 2015, won 95% of Scottish seats with just 50% of the vote

2019, LibDems won 12% of the vote but only 2% of seats, whereas they would've got 75 under a fully proportional system

Example of MP-Constituency link under FPTP

2017, Dawn Butler ignored Corbyn's 3 line whip and voted against Article 50, citing her constituency's overwhelming remain sentiment

Example of FPTP excluding extremism

2010, British National Party (BNP) won 2% of the national vote, but no seats 2009- won 2 seats in proportional European parliament elections

Example of FPTP forming strong govt

Blair- who only suffered 4 commons defeats in his 10 years of premiership

Other systems proving weak government/ slow transfer of power

2007 Scottish Parliament Election- took 2 weeks for SNP minority gov to be sworn in, after failed coalition negotiations with Lib Dem