1. How representative democracies elect their leaders
Electoral Systems
How representative democracies elect their leaders

2.   Canada: First Past the Post all eligible persons vote for their representative who belongs to a party
The party with the most votes gains the “seat” for the area
The party with the most seats becomes the government
The leader of the party becomes the Prime Minister (assigned by the party)
Concern: artificial majorities

3. First Past the Post Liberal PC NDP Alliance Bloc Other 45% 25% 15% 5%5%
10%
75%
20%
40%
35%
65%
Who won the first riding; second; third…
What would happen if the PC and Alliance merge and share votes
How many seats did the Liberals win – what percent is that
What percent of the overall vote did the Liberals gain
(5 = 71%)
(36%)

4. Party % of Votes % of Seats Party % of Votes % of Seats
CANADA 2000
Party
% of Votes
% of Seats
Liberal
40.8 57
Alliance
25.5 22
Progressive Conservative
12.2 4
Bloc Quebecois
10.7 13
New Democratic Party
8.5
CANADA 2004
Party
% of Votes
% of Seats
Liberal 37 44
Conservative 30 32
Bloc Quebecois 12 18
New Democratic Party 16 6
Other 5

5. United States: Electoral College all eligible persons vote for their choice of representative on the ballot
However, citizens are actually voting for their member of the electoral college (based on the number of Senators and House of Representatives)
The electoral college which obtains the most votes gets all of the votes for the entire state and they place the votes for the president
“Two-party system”

6. Presidential Candidate
% of Votes
% of Electoral Votes
Gore
48.3 49
Bush
48.1 50
Other (Nader)
3.4 1

8. Electoral vote 365 173 Popular vote 69,394,675 59,892,681
Obama McCain
Electoral vote
Popular vote 69,394, ,892,681
Percentage % %

9. Presidential Candidate Presidential Candidate
UNITED STATES 2000
Presidential Candidate
% of Votes
% of Electoral Votes
Gore
48.3 49
Bush
48.1 50
Other
3.4 1
UNITED STATES 2004
Presidential Candidate
% of Votes
% of Electoral Votes
Kerry 48 47
Bush 51 53
Other 1

10. Sweden: Proportional Representation all eligible members vote for the party they support (representatives are assigned by the parties)
The ballots for all parties are tallied up and the membership in the government is based on the proportion of votes the party received
Many feel this better represents the various ideological views of the citizens
Concern: less stability due to the need for coalition governments

11. Multi-system ballot Proportional Representation First Past the Post
Rick Mercer Rant October

12. Party % of Votes % of Seats
SWEDEN
Party
% of Votes
% of Seats
Social Democrat
36.4 37
Moderate
22.9 23
Left-Wing 12
Christian-Democrats
11.8
Center
5.1 5
Liberal
4.7
Green
4.5

13. Party % of Votes % of Seats Party % of Votes % of Seats
CANADA 2000
Party
% of Votes
% of Seats
Liberal
40.8 57
Alliance
25.5 22
Progressive Conservative
12.2 4
Bloc Quebecois
10.7 13
New Democratic Party
8.5
CANADA 2004
Party
% of Votes
% of Seats
Liberal 37 44
Conservative 30 32
Bloc Quebecois 12 18
New Democratic Party 16 6
Other 5

14. Presidential Candidate Presidential Candidate
UNITED STATES 2000
Presidential Candidate
% of Votes
% of Electoral Votes
Gore
48.3 49
Bush
48.1 50
Other
3.4 1
UNITED STATES 2004
Presidential Candidate
% of Votes
% of Electoral Votes
Kerry 48 47
Bush 51 53
Other 1

15. Stop and Reflect – Journal Entry
Should Canada adopt a system of proportional representation, or stick with FPTP?
In your journal entry consider what the consequences of your choice will be, and why your choice is better than the other alternative.