Electoral System in the uk

Every British citizen aged eighteen years or over who is not serving a sentence of imprisonment and is not a peer is eligible to be placed on the electoral register in a constituency. Normally this involves residence in the constituency on a certain day (10 October) but members of the armed forces and now British citizens who live abroad but have been registered within the previous five years can be entered on the register. At the moment there are 650 constituencies, the boundaries being drawn by impartial Boundary Commissions whose recommendations need approval of both Houses of Parliament. Their impartiality has not prevented their recommendations from being highly controversial as the way the boundaries are drawn can profoundly affect the electoral prospects of a particular party. The parties draw their support from different sections of the electorate and the exclusion or inclusion of a particular area can turn a safe seat into a marginal one and vice versa.

The choice of candidates by the parties profoundly affects the extent to which the voters’ wishes are reflected in the House of Commons because the voter can only choose between rival candidates. Each party has its own method for choosing candidates. The Labour Party in 1980 insisted that all Labour MPs must undergo a reselection process if they wished to be candidates at the next General Election. Anyone can form a political party, as happened in 1981 when the Social Democratic Party (SDP) was launched. Though election law puts strict limits on expenditure during an electoral campaign, to prevent bribery and corruption, it is very expensive to fight an election, particularly as national propaganda does not count towards election expenses. The Labour and Conservative parties draw their financial support mainly from the trade unions and industry respectively.

Their main disadvantage is, however, the British electoral system. Electors vote in their constituency and whichever candidate obtains most votes is elected an MP; even if he or she obtains only one vote more than his or her nearest rival and only a small percentage of the total vote. This system works best when there are only two parties, though even then it is possible for a party to obtain more over the country as a whole but have fewer seats in the House of Commons because its support may be unevenly distributed, so that it obtains big majorities in some seats and loses narrowly in others. This result is accentuated when there are three or more parties. A third party like the Liberals or now the Social Democratic and Liberal Alliance, whose support is spread fairly evenly throughout the country, is likely to win few seats but come second in many. Thus in the General Election of 1983, the Alliance obtained 25 per cent of vote but only 4 per cent of the seats.

Elections in Great Britain

The general election means that the voters in the country cast their vote for the candidate from the political party of their choice to be the Member of Parliament for the constituency. The political party which wins the most seats in the House of Commons forms the Government. This is different from by-election, which occurs when a Member dies, retires or disqualified, and voting takes place only in the constituency without a member, not throughout the country.

The United Kingdom is divided into areas which are known as constituencies. You live in a constituency and will register to vote there. You have one vote which you cast for the person you wish to represent you in the Parliament. Through this you also vote for the party which you wish to be in power.

The time between general elections is 5 years. About the month before the election the Prime Minister meets a small group of close advisers to discuss the date which would best suit the party. The date is announced to the Cabinet. The Prime Minister formally asks the Sovereign to dissolve the Parliament. General elections are usually held 17 days after the dissolution of the Parliament. Thursdays are popular general election days. General elections are often held in either spring or autumn.

Each constituency is divided into a number of polling districts; each of them has a polling station. Most polling stations are in public buildings such as schools, town halls or council offices. Voting takes place on Election Day (polling day) from 7 am till 10 pm in each constituency. Voters are sent a polling card in advance. Voting is by secret ballot, and the only people allowed in the polling station are presiding officer, the polling clerks, the duty police officer, the candidates, their election agents and the voters.

Just before the poll opens, the presiding officer shows the ballot boxes to those at the polling station to prove they are empty. The boxes are then locked and sealed. Voting takes place in a booth. The voter marks the ballot paper with a cross in the box opposite the name of the candidate of his or her choice and folds the paper to conceal the vote before placing it in the ballot box.

The results from each constituency are announced as soon as the votes have been counted, usually the same night. The national result is known by the next morning.

When all the results are known, the Queen usually invites the leader of the party winning the most seats in the House of Commons to be the Prime Minister and to form a Government. The second largest party becomes the official Opposition with the small group of its MPs being chosen to form the Shadow Cabinet. Its leader is known as the Leader of the Opposition. A date is then announced for the State Opening of Parliament, when the Monarch officially opens the new Parliament.

The House of Lords is unelected Chamber so is not involved in the electoral process. It closes when the Parliament dissolves and reassembles for the State Opening of Parliament.