Comments | caramel_betty: Proportional Representation

caramel_betty

Proportional Representation

Oct 12, 2007 10:43

A couple of discussions of this have turned up in matgb's journal recently and, I think, a while back someone brought up the Canadian (specifically, Ontario) proposal for Multi-Member Proportional voting. The system is a bit like that used in Wales and Scotland - have a "normal" MP that you vote for, and then have a second vote for a party list ( Read more... )

for'n, voting, proportional representation, politics

Comments 5

matgb October 12 2007, 10:12:53 UTC

Aye, I talked about it here:
http://matgb.livejournal.com/229133.html

I'm not sold on MMP, it's better than a pure list, and probably marginally better than FPTP (I consider pure list to be worse). I didn't really follow the run up to, but I'm befuddled they chose MMP over STV, it just makes no sense.

caramel_betty October 12 2007, 10:26:58 UTC

There appears to have been a citizens' panel and my experience is that the average man in the street who cares about his right to vote is wedded to first past the post.

It's simple, he cries. Well, actually, there's a lot of nastiness hidden under that simplicity. I get a guy whose job it is to represent me. Well, no, you get a guy whose job is to keep a plurality (say, 30-40%) happy, and if you're not in that plurality. I know how my vote will count - unless there's a surprise surge for someone who isn't in the top two, and your vote for the purple party doesn't make a difference to the new spat between the grey party and the mauve party, and someone you don't want gets elected.

Thing is, people seem quite happy to not have a MUST HAVE ONE MP mindset in other areas of life. Multiple parents on the PTA at school? Two union reps from the shop floor? Three councillors for one ward? And yet in Parliament, MUST HAVE ONE MP. It truly boggles my mind.

(The comment has been removed)

caramel_betty October 12 2007, 11:34:01 UTC

Theresa May and her kinky boots for PM!

sleetersoulfire October 12 2007, 15:32:35 UTC

Democracy - people getting what they deserve.

I despaired when some students in my Government and Politics class last year couldn't understand how people could see FPTP as being unfair. Their argument was always "but they won".

caramel_betty October 12 2007, 16:00:04 UTC

There are many who would, I fear, simply count all the votes and install a Parliament of 645 people for the winning party.