British Electoral System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

British Electoral System - Essay Example In this system ranks are provided by the voter to the candidates by marking 1, 2, 3 etc on the ballot paper against the name of the candidate. The candidates are ranked across different parties or within the same party by the voters. Certain quota of votes must be achieved by the candidate in order to win. This system is used â€Å"for local government elections in Northern Ireland and Scotland, European Parliament elections in Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Assembly† (Voting systems in the UK, 2008, p.2).Under this system the voters can cast their votes into two parts, firstly for constituency MP and second for party list. The lack of proportionality that arises from the FPTP is compensated by this system. â€Å"AMS is used for elections to the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the London Assembly† (Voting systems in the UK, 2008, pp.2- 3).   Closed Party List SystemThis system is applicable to a multi member constituency. The electo rs vote for the party and as per the proportion won by the party, it gets seat in the constituency.† The Closed Party List system has been used for European Parliament elections in the UK since 1999 except in Northern Ireland where STV is used† (Voting systems in the UK, 2008, p.3).The Single- member plurality, which is followed by the British Electoral system was believed to facilitate â€Å"a two-party system of alternating single-party majority government†.... le transferable vote In this system ranks are provided by the voter to the candidates by marking 1, 2, 3 etc on the ballot paper against the name of the candidate. The candidates are ranked across different parties or within the same party by the voters. Certain quota of votes must be achieved by the candidate in order to win. This system is used â€Å"for local government elections in Northern Ireland and Scotland, European Parliament elections in Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Assembly† (Voting systems in the UK, 2008, p.2). Additional Member system Under this system the voters can cast their votes into two parts, firstly for constituency MP and second for party list. The lack of proportionality that arises from the FPTP is compensated by this system. â€Å"AMS is used for elections to the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the London Assembly† (Voting systems in the UK, 2008, pp.2- 3). Closed Party List System This system is applicabl e to a multi member constituency. The electors vote for the party and as per the proportion won by the party, it gets seat in the constituency.† The Closed Party List system has been used for European Parliament elections in the UK since 1999 except in Northern Ireland where STV is used† (Voting systems in the UK, 2008, p.3). Effectiveness of the Electoral System The Single- member plurality, which is followed by the British Electoral system was believed to facilitate â€Å"a two-party system of alternating single-party majority government†. But in the 2010 UK election no party could secure an overall majority due to which formation of peacetime coalition government was done (Curtice, 2010, p. 623). This issue raised questions on the effectiveness of the system. To understand this merits and demerits of