Should the Uk Reform the Voting System for Elections to the House of Commons

1001 Words5 Pages
Should the UK reform the voting system for elections to the House of Commons? UK shouldn’t change the First Past the Post system because it has been used for a long time and that it is the simplest system, therefore every voter including the uneducated meaning who have very less information about government and politics know how the system works. Simply in any single constituency contest, the candidate with the most votes wins the seat. That candidate then becomes a MP and will represent the constituency until the next general election. Electors don’t have to handle candidate list or indicate preferences on the ballot paper, also there are no complicated quotas to determine which candidates get elected. Who ever gets the highest vote wins. It allows voters to choose between people rather than just between parties. Voters can assess the performance of individual candidates rather than just having to accept a list of candidates presented by a party. It gives a chance for popular independent candidates to be elected. This may be particularly important in developing party systems. First Past the Post system doesn’t require complicated calculation unlike the Single Transferable Vote system which needs calculation to achieve the final results. This also confuses the voter as well on how the system works and that what impact will their vote have on the final results. This leads the voters in hesitation on whom to vote for. Fist Past the Post system takes place in single member constituencies. Every constituency has a single MP who is available for consultation about problems varying from antisocial behaviour to hospital waiting lists in the area. So therefore if anyone has any problems they know who to go to, unlike other systems where they will be more than one person representing the area and will leave people confused about whom to go to. With Supplementary Vote
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