Voting Systems in the UK – Why do we hold elections and what are the different systems? Read the question very carefully since the examining team are looking to make the question look slightly different although it is examining the same general area. If you have a good understanding of this topic then your should be able to apply that understanding to whatever way the question is worded. You can lose a lot of marks by answering the question you want to answer and have revised rather than the actual question set.

Why do we hold elections? To choose representatives We live in a REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY – meaning we choose people to make most of our decisions for us. Elections also provide the opportunity to… Elect a Government Most successful candidates are members of political parties. Elections allow voters to choose/make clear the party they wish to run the country after the election.

British Electoral System Additional Member System First Past the Post Single Transferable Vote What do we mean when we talk of the UK or British electoral system? No longer purely First Past the Post. In the past when we were looking at alternatives to FPtP we had to study examples from Italy, Germany, Ireland, Israel. This is no longer the case - In the UK we have all of the above systems in operation.

There are two main types of voting system: Plurality Voting Systems Where the winning candidate is required to have more votes than every other candidate. This can be referred to as a “winner takes all” situation. Proportional Representation Systems (PR) Where the number of seats won by a party in the election is broadly in proportion to its share of the vote (if a party receives 20% of the public votes they will receive roughly 20% of the available seats in parliament). Broad distinction into two types of voting systems:- Plurality systems - where a simple majority leads to election - the First Past the Post System would be an example of this type of system Proportional Representation - where the result of the election is more or less in line with the proportion of votes cast. PR is a generic term -you must understand the general concept of PR but also have knowledge of specific systems - not only how they work but also some specific strengths and weaknesses. The obvious example you should know about is the Additional Member System - since it is the one used for the Scottish Parliament. Evidence from last years exam indicated a lack of knowledge about this system.

Result of the Election Following the election, depending on the result, different forms of government may be formed: A majority government e.g. Blair/Brown UK Labour Gov (2005-2010) or Salmond SNP Gov (2011-2016) A minority government e.g. SNP Scottish Government (2007-11) or the current UK Conservative Gov (2017- present) A coalition government e.g. Cameron-Clegg Conservative/ Lib. Dem Gov. from 2010-2015

Electoral Systems used in the UK Election for … System used … UK Parliament – House of Commons First Past the Post Scottish Parliament Additional Member System (AMS) Local Councils in Scotland Single Transferable Vote (STV)

The exceptions have been 2010 (Coalition) and 2017 (Minority). The First Past the Post (FPTP) electoral system usually produces a majority government. The exceptions have been 2010 (Coalition) and 2017 (Minority). In most years one party wins more than half the seats. For example, in 2005 Labour won 35% of the vote but had 55% of the MPs.

Majority Government Advantages Government is able to take bold and decisive action. No need to compromise to make deals with other parties Full term of office likely Able to put manifesto pledges into effect Disadvantages Can become arrogant and ignore views of others Elected by a minority of voters – undemocratic Continues in office while unpopular Only draws members from one party

Result of 2010 UK General Election The Conservatives were most popular party in with 39% of vote which gave them 47% of the seats. Labour attracted 31% and won 40% of seats. The Liberal Democrats came third with 25% of vote but won only 9% of seats.

Coalition Government 650 UK Parliament seats up for election (2010). 326 seats needed to win a majority. Prediction 326 to win The Conservatives won the most seats in the 2010 UK General Election but fell 19 seats short of an overall majority. To run the country the Conservatives formed a coalition with the Liberal Democrats.

Coalition Government Advantages Less extreme policies as parties have to compromise More talent to choose from in forming executive More voters feel they have a say Different policies introduced Disadvantages Parties may disagree leading to breakdown of agreement No one voted for coalition May give too much power to small parties Less stable so frequent elections may be called

Minority Government 129 Scottish Parliament seats up for election. 65 seats needed to win a majority.

SNP only won 63 of the 129 seats in the 2016 Scottish Parliament Election. They run the country as a minority administration and gain support from other parties on a bill to bill basis.

Minority Government Theresa May called a “Snap Election” in June 2017. It was widely expected that the Conservatives would win a massive majority - the exact opposite happened.

Despite many calls to resign (even from her own party), May decided to form a minority administration after creating a “confidence and supply” deal with the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party. This deal has caused WIDESPREAD controversy for numerous reasons and has proven to be unstable already. A “confidence and supply” arrangement falls far short of a full-blown coalition. It does not involve an agreed five-year programme of policies. Instead, the junior party – the DUP – has agreed to support the government on KEY votes only in return for some political support on key issues/policies of their own.

Minority Government The largest party after the election has fewer than 50% of the seats. In such a situation the party may have to compromise on its programme in order to persuade other parties not to vote against it’s policies. Advantages More views are represented in Government Parties working together may produce policies that are supported by greater number of voters. Disadvantages Governing party has no majority therefore unlikely to be able to put it’s policies into effect. Likely to be only short term solution with another election being called fairly soon after first election.

Voting Systems in the UK Which voting system is used for each of the following elections: UK Parliament, Scottish Parliament and Local Council elections in Scotland. What is the main difference between a plurality system and a proportional representation system? What two choices are voters making when they vote? Using examples from the slides, explain what is meant by majority, coalition and minority government. Why was the 2010 UK General Election unusual? Describe two advantages and two disadvantages of majority, coalition and minority governments. Why was Theresa May’s decision to form a minority government in 2017 controversial? Why are minority governments more unstable than coalition governments? Use the 2017 election results to help you explain.