Existing FPTP: First Past The Post System

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Recommended: Arguements for and against forms of proportional representation

Out of all potential replacements for the existing FPTP (First Past the Post) system, Proportional Representation by far the most widely touted. Used in more than half of countries worldwide, it has been advocated by many groups as a replacement for the existing system on the basis of its ability to accurately represent the wishes of the constituency.

There are several different types of Proportional Representation, with varying levels of proportionality, vote thresholds, and regional representation. These are: Mixed-Member Proportional, Party-List Proportional, Open List Proportional and Single Transferable Vote (which is sometimes counted separately). Using the 2015 UK parliamentary elections as an example, we can analyze the several main …show more content…

Electors select both a local candidate for the constituency, and select members of a national party, which determines the overall composition of the legislature.

Total Vote = Constituency Seats Won + Party List Vote (distributed according to how many seats left until proportionality, and subject to the cutoff)

In Germany, a 5% threshold is enacted meaning that a party must gain over 5% of the vote in order to be counted in the Party List Vote. This threshold is down to 3% if a party gains over 3 direct constituency seats. It is only after constituency seats are awarded that the party list is used to calculate how many additional seats are given to each party to ensure proportionality.

Usually, half of the total seats are constituency seats. Thus, we assume that the UK has 325 constituency seats and 325 additional seats.

Example: UK 2015 election with German MMP

UK-PR-GER

Smaller regional parties (Plaid Cymru, Sinn Fein, DUP, and the SDLP) are only in parliament because of their ability to gain regional …show more content…

Electors select a single national party, which determines the overall composition of the legislature. Israel uses a closed-list system, where voters only vote for parties and do not determine the order of the election of candidates. A 3.25% threshold is enacted for parties wishing to enter the legislature.

Example: UK 2015 election with Israeli PR
UK-PR-ISR.png

Smaller regional parties (Plaid Cymru, Sinn Fein, DUP, and the SDLP) are unable to gain representation, as they fall below the 3.25% cutoff
The large parties (Conservatives, Labor, UKIP, Liberal Democrats, SNP and the Green Party) are above the 5% cutoff, meaning they gain votes in proportion to their popular vote.
Open Party-List Proportional (Brazil)

Similar to above, Open Party-List Proportional, or just PR, is a much simpler voting system which takes into account just national results to allocate seats. Electors select a single national party, which determines the overall composition of the legislature. However, voters can also vote for individual candidates within a party, determining the order of selection of candidates. In Brazil, there is no threshold for entering the legislature - any party can enter should it muster sufficient

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