What is proportional representation?
Proportional representation is whereby the results of the vote are directly proportional to the views of the public, meaning that the results are representative. It is the main principle behind a number of electoral systems and contrasts to the majoritarian principle, which would mean that literally, most votes wins. An example of a PR system is AMS; Additional member system; or STV; Single Transferrable vote. AMS is a hybrid system and only 1/3rd of the seats are elected via PR. This also uses the list system, in which voters choose between parties and not candidates.
Highlight 3 arguments against plurality systems
One disadvantage of FPTP is that the results produced can be unrepresentative of the public’s opinion. This is because parties can win and lose simultaneously due to having a higher percentage of the vote, but not gaining more or less seats than their nearest competitor. An example of this is during the 1951 elections, where labour had 48.8% of the vote and conservatives had 48%. Even though by percentage labour had one, conservatives gained 321 seats and won the election, whereas labour only got 295 seats.
Another disadvantage of plurality systems and FPTP is that it discriminates against small parties. Historically, few small parties have done well under this type of system. In the 2015 general elections, UKIP needed a minimum of 3.8 million votes to gain 1 seat, whereas labour and conservatives both needed between 30,000-40,000. Another example of this is in the 1983 general elections in which labour had 2.2% more of the vote than liberal democrats but still gained 186 more seats. This is usually because smaller parties do not tend to have concentrated support and therefore they do not win seats, which was shown in the 2015 general election in which UKIP came second in 180 seats.
A further disadvantage of FPTP is safe seats. Safe seats basically mean in an area where there are many supporters of one particular party, it is highly unlikely that another MP will win a majority in that constituency. Approximately 500 out of 650 seats in parliament are classed as safe seats. A good example of a safe seat is Nick Clegg for the Lib Dems, in Sheffield Hallam, or David Cameron for the conservatives in Witney.
Explain the impact of different electoral systems upon party representation
First past the post, or single member plurality system is a system which literally means ‘most votes wins.’ It is designed to be simple and to produce a strong, single party government. Within FPTP you get one vote, and they consist of 1 candidate constituencies, and you need a majority of 326 in Westminster to be invited to form a government. Overall FPTP is in favour of large parties. An example of this is that in the 2015 election labour and conservatives both only needed between 30,000 and 40,000 votes to gain a seat, whereas UKIP needed 3.8 million. This shows that parties such as the labour and conservative parties have a larger majority with a small amount of support. In 1997, labour had a 179 majority but only had 36% of the vote and in 1983 when labour were against the liberal democrats, labour gained only 2.2% more of the vote but still had 186 more seats. On the other hand, FPTP underrepresents and discriminates against small parties. A good example of this is that in 2015 UKIP gained 12.6% of the vote with only 1 seat, even though they came 2nd in 180 constituencies. SNP also gained less than 5% of the vote, but came out with 56 seats. Generally FPTP produces a strong, single party government with a large majority, as under FPTP there has only been one coalition; 2010-2015; Conservative/Lib dem’s. In 1997 Tony Blair won with the largest majority ever of 179 which created an elective dictatorship, however Blair’s leadership eventually led to the Iraq war which is still ongoing today.
Another system is AMS, the additional member system. This is a hybrid system of FPTP and the LIST system, and its proportional element is to counter the unfairness of the FPTP. AMS uses the D’hont formula, meaning that 2/3rd of the vote Is calculated by FPTP and the other third is done using PR. An example of this is the Welsh assembly. Out of 60 seats available, 40 were from FPTP and 20 were from List. In Scotland out of 129 seats available 73 were from FPTP and 56 were from list. Generally, AMS doesn’t over represent large parties, nor does it under represent small parties. In Scotland in 2011 SNP gained an absolute majority and became classed as a large party as a result of AMS. In 2003 in Scotland, the green party gained 7 seats and the socialists gained 6, and this only made up 10% of the total vote. As a result, a coalition government is usually produced, which puts power in the hands of smaller parties.
The LIST system is a proportional system, the closed list is used in EU elections. Parties that are classed as large under FPTP are generally not as large meaning you tend not to get large party dominance. In 2014, Labour had only 20 MEP’s and Conservatives had only 19. This basically means that a party of government under 1 system, could be a party that becomes 3rd under another system. As an example of small parties, UKIP in 2014 had 24 MEP’s, which is 4 more than labour and 5 more than conservatives. It is easy for large parties to become small and small parties to become large, which makes it fairer for smaller parties to gain power. Generally it produces a coalition of all parties across Europe within the EU government.
STV means the single transferrable vote and this is the system that uses a quota. The quota entails; total votes cast divided by the number of seats available, plus one. The system is a preferential system and is used in the Northern Ireland assembly, which has multi member constituencies. There are 108 MP’s as there are 18 constituencies and each constituency has 6 members, and this is broadly proportional as different members mean there are different views and policies being put into place. It is proportional as you vote by 1st 2nd and 3rd preferences, which means small parties tend to do well aswell. There are no safe seats and no wasted votes so both large and small parties do equally well, making STV one of a few systems that is equal to both. Within the first decade of the NI assembly they only met together for 18 months. The system is designed to be fair to small parties and generally results in a coalition government.
The final 2 electoral systems are the AV system and the SV system. AV is not used to elect but is a majoritarian system which results in the bottom candidate dropping out. An example of this is Jeremy Corbyn who won in the first round with 59% of the vote, whereas his deputy Tom Watson did not win until the 3rd round. SV is designed to be majoritarian but becomes plurality after the 2nd round and large parties tend to dominate. In mayoral elections, labour and conservative both tend to be 1st and 2nd preference. An example of this was Johnston in 2012. It tends to discriminate against smaller parties. An example of this was the Lib Dems in 2008, who had 640,000 2nd preferences. The problem is small parties never get to run off, meaning as a plurality they are never going to win. No type of government Is formed as this is only used in Westminster; there is only one mayor.
In conclusion, the electoral system determines the party system which determines the party status. The outcome of parties depends on the system used, but due to the fact Westminster elections only use FPTP, it is unlikely that smaller parties will ever be able to overcome the major ones.