{funambulism}

Five Myths About Proportional Representation

To the tune of: Malcolm X – No Taxation Without Representation

  1. Proportionally Delightful

    Minority parties get more seats.
    Small parties don’t necessarily get a larger share of seats – some systems, like the “mixed member” system of Germany, put minimum limits on the share of the vote (as high as 5%), that exclude smaller parties.

  2. Parties will be weakened
    PR can give more power to parties. A purely proportional system normally allows parties to control the selection of candidates completely, leading to politicians with much stronger party loyalty. Some systems work against this, especially ones with constituencies, but there’s almost always a party-selection element.
  3. There will be no independents
    Independents can still stand, especially in systems that have constituencies that are then topped-up  – they do especially well if they have a national profile though.
  4. You still have to choose one party
     It doesn’t mean you just have to choose one party – a preferential system allows you to list parties/candidates in order of preference or leave them out completely.
  5. It’s too complicated for Britain
    It does work with Britain – we already use it in the European elections, and Scotland and Wales. And it’s less complicated than guessing the intentions of your fellow constituents to vote tactically on the basis of poorly-biased voting-intention polls.

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  1. Tweets that mention Five Myths About Proportional Representation: #ge2010 #ukvote #ukelection — Topsy.com

    […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Dan Griliopoulos and Simon Hurst, Free Press Now. Free Press Now said: RT @GriddleOctopus: Five Myths About Proportional Representation: http://ow.ly/1IgpM #ge2010 #ukvote #ukelection […]

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  2. Wayne Smith

    The myth is that pr gives power to political parties and party elites. The reality is that pr gives voters the power to hold politicians and political parties accountable, and gives Parliament the power to hold Government accountable.

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  3. Grill

    Well, both of those are true. PR does give more power to voters to select governments and candidates – but it gives power to parties, first, to pick who runs as their candidates – and the list system removes party apparatchiks from ever having to be submitted to the electoral system, much like the Lords appointment or European Election process does right now.

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