Growth of Democracy in Britain

1095 Words5 Pages
What progress did Britain make towards becoming a democracy between 1867 and 1928? In 1867 Britain was a very undemocratic place. Only a small minority of people in the United Kingdom could vote. In a democracy we should be entitled to universal suffrage. This means that we should all be entitled to vote, no matter what our background. Before 1867 only 1 in 7 men could vote. Between 1867 and 1928 many improvements were made in making Britain a democracy. Great improvements were made in making sure the elections that were run were free and fair. Between 1872 and 1928, the government became far more representative. In 1867 only rich, men over age 25 could vote. At the end of 1928, all men and women over 21 had the right to vote, due to the acts passed that meant universal suffrage was in place. Throughout the years, many people in the UK were able to access information easier and these in turn lead to Britain becoming a democracy. Another reason that meant Britain in turn developed into a democracy was how easy it was to become an MP. This essay will argue that Britain made considerable progress in becoming a democracy. To start, many improvements were made to ensure elections were run freely and fairly. In 1872, voters were made to cast their vote publically. This made it very easy to intimidate voters into voting for a certain party/candidate. Candidates were even able to buy votes by offering food, drinks and even jobs in order to secure votes. In 1872 the secret ballot act was introduced. This mean that voters were able to cast their vote in secret polling booths and that the obvious fact of intimidation was eliminated, which in turn allowed voters to vote for who they truly believed would be the best candidate, which ultimately made a great step in making Britain a democracy. In 1883 ridiculous amounts of money were spent on election campaigns, but the
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