Electoral systems

• First past the post (FPTP) is a simple plurality system where the candidate with the most votes will be elected and does not have to win by a certain majority.
• FPTP is used in UK general elections where voters cast one vote for their preferred candidate, and the candidate with the largest number of votes in a constituency (seat) will be elected to Parliament as an MP. There are 650 constituencies in the UK. The party with the most seats can form a government.
• Agree

  • FPTP often leads to a strong government with a clear mandate to carry out its policies because the winning party can win a clear majority.
  • FPTP gives voters a clear choice and promotes a system where two parties dominate.
  • In 1997 Tony Blair carried out constitutional reforms after a large election victory where Labour won 418 seats.
• Disagree

  • There is limited choice for some voters in FPTP because of safe seats where the MP has a secure majority and it is very unlikely that another candidate will win.
  • Theresa May’s constituency, Maidenhead, is a safe seat with the Conservatives winning over 60% of the vote in 2017.
  • People voting other parties may feel as though their vote is wasted.
  • In 2017, the North East Fife Constituency saw 67% of votes wasted for losing candidates with the SNP winning the constituency by a majority of 2 votes.
• • STV divides a country into multi-member constituencies.
  • voters number their choice of candidate in order of preference.
  • Candidates require a certain quota to be elected, which is calculated by dividing the total votes cast by (the number of seats contested in the constituency plus one), and then adding one (the Droop formula).
  • If no candidate reaches the quota on the first round of voting then the candidate with the lowest votes is eliminated and the second preference of voters supporting them are redistributed.
• • STV offers a large choice for voters because multi-member constituencies mean that voters can choose between candidates from the same and different parties.
  • In the 2017 Northern Ireland Assembly election, the DUP had 3 candidates and Alliance had 2 candidates standing in the Belfast East constituency.
  • Encourages positive campaigning, because candidates wish to gain transferred votes from other candidates.
• • Under a system of STV, votes and seats are highly proportional to one another.
  • Parties with a more thinly distributed vote can win seats unlike in FPTP.
  • There are fewer wasted votes because voters second preferences are transferred to another candidate if their first preference candidate is eliminated.
• • In the system of STV, the link between representatives and voters can be weak because there are many members representing the same constituents rather than one member.
  • The voting system is more complicated than FPTP and takes longer to reach a final result, particularly if there are many rounds of counts where candidates are eliminated.
  • Donkey voting can take place where voters rank the candidates in the order they appear on the ballot paper, rather than ordering based on their preference.
• • FPTP is likely to produce a government with a stronger mandate than under STV. Under STV a coalition government is most likely which can lead to instability and less effective policymaking than under a FPTP system as it can produce a one party winner.
  • STV can also result in a minority government which is a government that runs the country but without a majority of seats in the legislature.
• • FPTP can result in a minority government, as with the Conservative government in 2017.
  • FPTP can result in a coalition government, as with the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats in 2010.
  • However, under FPTP a coalition or minority government are less likely.
• • FPTP is less proportional in transferring votes into seats, whilst STV translates votes into seats more fairly.
  • Under STV smaller parties and parties with a more thinly spread support are better represented than under FPTP.
  • In the 2017 general election which uses FPTP, the Liberal Democrats won over 7% of the vote but under 2% of seats in Parliament. UKIP won 600,000 votes but no seats.
• • FPTP provides a strong link between politicians and the voters who they represent.
  • Under FPTP in the UK general election, there are small constituencies with a single MP to represent them.
  • STV can provide a weaker link between representatives and voters because of large multi-member constituencies where many members represent the same constituents.
  • In the Northern Ireland Assembly elections, there are 5 members representing each constituency.
• • AMS is an electoral system where voters have two votes: one vote for their constituency representative using FPTP and a second vote for a ‘party list’ in order to elect an ‘additional’ representative.
  • The party list uses multi-member regional constituencies and a party’s list of candidates is published before the election.
• • After the FPTP style voting for constituency representatives has been counted, additional members are added proportionally to voting support for each party so that parliament more closely matches how the country voted.
  • Additional members are added to regional constituencies to match how the constituencies voted, and may increase a party’s representation in the area if they had a lot of support but couldn’t win against safe seats.
• Advantages

  • AMS gives voters more choice because they can use one vote for an MP they support and another to support a party of their choosing.
  • Voters can vote for a ‘split ticket’ where they support an MP from one party and use their party list vote to support a different party.
• Disadvantages

  • Smaller parties are less represented under AMS than in an entirely proportional system because the party list system can advantage the largest parties.
  • In Wales, there are a small number of top-up seats, which favours the Labour Party.
  • Party list candidates have less legitimacy than members elected by the FPTP vote because they aren’t directly elected with a personal mandate from voters.
  • AMS lacks democratic transparency because the party decides who is on the party list and ranks the order of candidates.
• • In the SV system, a voter has a first and second preference vote with a candidate elected for winning more than 50% of the first preference votes.
  • If no candidates win over 50% of the vote, then all candidates are eliminated except the top two who will have second preference votes allocated to decide the winner.
• • SV is a simple voting system because voters only need to select a first and second preference.
  • SV stops candidates winning through having a small level of support and encourages more positive campaigning as candidates need the second preference votes of other parties.
  • SV ensures large support for the winning candidate such as with Sadiq Khan winning 56.8% of the total vote in the 2016 London Mayor election.
• Disadvantages (SV)

  • Votes can be wasted because voters only choose two candidates meaning that many votes can be excluded from the final count if their top two candidates are eliminated.
  • In the 2012 London Mayor election, 15% of votes were wasted in round one and over 7% of votes in round two.
• • SV is not proportional to the wishes of a region - only one candidate is elected, rather than multiple proportionally reflecting the wishes of the voters.
  • The winning candidate does not require an absolute majority (over 50%) of votes and so can be elected with minority support - they just need the most votes in total after the second round.
• how many constituencies does the UK have? 650
• • FPTP is used for UK general elections because it is simple, easy for voters to use and often produces a strong government.
  • FPTP suits larger parties, which also explains why FPTP remains the system used.
  • Labour and the Conservatives benefit from the voting system, and changing it would likely harm their election success.
  • The AV referendum in 2011, which voted against changing the system, suggests there is limited popular support to move away from FPTP.
• • STV is used in Northern Ireland because it is proportional and so ensures many different parties are represented by the results of the election.
  • STV prevents one party dominating in the Northern Ireland Assembly and instead forms power shares.
  • This is important in Northern Ireland where there has traditionally been a conflict between nationalist and unionist communities.
• • AMS is used in Scotland, Wales and London Assemblies.
  • AMS is used because it has representative results and is more proportional than FPTP, without as radical a change as STV.
• SV is used for electing Mayors and Police and Crime Commissioners.

  • SV is used because it is simple.
  • By only enabling two candidates through to the final round, it means that candidates need a large amount of positive support and a clear mandate to win.
• • Proportional systems such as STV & AMS have increased the number of coalition governments in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales
  • FPTP more often results in a single party government forming.
  • The AMS voting system brought about a Scottish Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition in Scotland in 1999 & 2003, which removed tuition fees for university students and introduced free nursing care for elderly people, which did not exist in England.
• • Proportional systems, such as in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, have encouraged more negotiations between political parties.
  • If a minority government forms, as it has several times in Scotland and Wales, then the government needs the support of other parties to pass legislation and its policies.
  • AMS has led to an SNP minority government from 2007-2011.
• • Proportional systems such as AMS & STV give more choice to voters than FPTP where voters have 1 vote for 1 candidate.
  • AMS gives voters 2 votes, 1 for their constituency member and one for a party’s list candidates.
  • STV gives voters a preferential vote on a number of candidates, including multiple candidates from the same party.
• • Proportional electoral systems better represent minor parties and are not affected by how the votes have been distributed.
  • In FPTP parties are less successful if their vote is thinly spread rather than concentrated in specific areas.
• In the 2019 election, 71.2% of votes were wasted.