Electoral systems
Revision questions
1. What is meant by mandate?
When a party has a clear statement of support from the voting public for its
policies, ideas or manifesto
2. What is a one-off vote on a specific issue better known as?
A referendum
3. List at least 5 reasons why we have elections
Representation; choosing a government; participation; influence over policy;
accountability; citizen education; legitimacy; recruitment
4. Name at least 3 models of representative government
Delegate model; trustee model; constituency representation; party
representation; descriptive or functional representation
5. Which English MP first proposed the trustee model in the Eighteenth
Century?
Edmund Burke
6. Define majoritarian system
One in which the winning candidate must achieve more than 50% of the vote
7. What type of system os FPTP?
Simple plurality
8. Which system aims to achieve a close fit between votes cast and seats
won?
Proportional
9. What is district magnitude?
The number of seats available per constituency
10. What is a mixed or hybrid system?
What that combines the features of two or more systems, e.g. AMS
11. Give at least 3 advantages of majoritarian systems
Winning candidate has secured a majority of votes; single-member
constituencies; harder for smaller, more extreme parties to win seats; produce
strong, single-party government
12. Give at least 3 characteristics of proportional systems
Multi-member constituencies; electoral formulae are sometimes used;
outcome is proportional; tend to produce coalitions; no single party tends to
win overall majority