Report for the Joint committee on the Constitution.
Alternatives to the PR-STV as well as the actual process of changing the electoral
system;
The PR-STV voting system has been present in Ireland since the time of Home Rule
‘STV came to Ireland because it was the system favoured by Britain’s electoral
reformers….In 1911 it put forward STV as a way of easing the Home Rule crisis;
STV in Ireland, the PR Society suggested, would be particularly appropriate because
it would guarantee minority representation’ (Gallagher, 197).
In order to investigate the question, ‘Does Ireland need a new Electoral system, one
would have to look at its present Electoral System( proportional representation by
means of a single transferable vote) and also look at what are the alternative changes.
The Irish Electoral system at present is a very broad system and allows for a lot of
votes, counts and transfers. The PR-STV System allows voters to vote in preference,
this means voters can switch among different parties. This also allows for smaller
parties to gain high numbers of votes in areas where they are most popular. (High
degree of localism and a lot to do with geographical spread of campaigning, support
and finally received votes). Also the size of the constituency is important in this
system; the quota determines how many seats there are available. The quota is
calculated by the total number of valid votes, divided by the number of seats available
+1 and add 1 again to the answer you get. In order to change this way of voting,
which has a strong history in Ireland, there needs to be a list of alternatives which the
Irish voters and representatives could choose from. (The electorates).
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According to Gallagher’s Article ‘Does Ireland Need a new Electoral System?’ there
are five main options;
1. Single-member plurality system.
This is formally known as the ‘First past the post’. The winner gains the absolute
majority. This type of system involves long Counts and also there is a strong degree
of Marginality. This system is present in Britain, United States and Germany. To date
this, has had ‘very little support in Ireland. It has twice been rejected by the electorate;
it produces an obvious and high amount of Disproportionality’ (Gallagher, 211).
2. List system with preferential voting.
This is a ballot type of vote, whereby voters cast a preference for one or more of their
party’s candidates. This system is evident in Finland, Denmark and Italy. The
characteristics of this type of system illustrate, ‘it would not , of itself, bring about any
significant changes in proportionality or government stability, and in particular the
aspect of intra-party competition would still be present’ (Gallagher, 211).
3. List systems without preferential voting.
This is a strict voting system. ‘Voters can simply express a preference for a party list,
with the party itself deciding which candidates receive the seats it wins.’(Gallager,
211) This type of arrangement would mean very little participation where the voters
were concerned and would be most popular among the politicians as they wound be
the ones gaining from it and the countries people loosing out. In terms of a democracy,
this system is too rigid to be voting by. This voting plan is perceived in Israel, France
of 1986, Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Belgium.
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4. A hybrid system.
This is Irelands fourth alternative to PR-STV system. This type consists of having
two different ways to the Dáil, half the politicians would be elected under the
plurality system and the other half by non-preferential lists. This type of voting
system is very complex and one the Irish people would find hard to adapt to. The
West German Bunstag is elected in this manner.
5. The Alternative Vote.
According to Gallagher, this is probably the most likely applicant to replace the
PR-STV, if there is to be any change made that is. AV is based on the singlemember constituencies. This by definition means, ‘winner takes all’ within each
constituency, regardless of how the winner has won his/her votes, by means of
which voting system. AV is only in practice in one other country in the world and
that is Australia.
So there we have them, the five possible alternatives to our current voting system
in the Republic of Ireland. So one might ask, do we need change in this field? In
our current economic climate, people are very vulnerable and see any sort of
change as a possible escape. Considering the recent opinion polls on the trust the
people of Ireland have in our present government, a general election with a new
style of voting system may be the light at the end of the tunnel for many of our
Irish citizens. These are the people who have been affected and are been affected
by our current economic difficulties, with losing Jobs, outstanding mortgage
repayments, and repossession of home and cars. A direction towards government
stability is exactly what is needed.
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The actual change of our electoral system would consist of; you the committee on
the constitution looking at which alternative would best suit the Irish country and
government. Figuring this out could/may consist of a ‘mock’ election, in which
the advantages and disadvantages would become clear. The actual process of
changing the electoral system is most likely to become a controversial issue
especially among our older generation, who are most of the time reluctant to
change. So it’s up to this committee, if there is a change to be made, to make it to
suit the range of voters within Ireland.
In conclusion to this report, I think this review of the electoral system is a very
adequate move on the committee’s part. Although the outcome may be to remain
with our current voting system, this review is necessary in light of recent changes
in people’s political preferences. ‘In a context of unprecedented social and
economic change, party leaders have demonstrated unusual organisational
creativity in adopting strategies to manage political consequences of these changes.
With the potential for new issues, cleavages and parties surely exists in this
changing environment, and while elections have been hotly contested in the recent
era of increasing floating voters and declining party membership….’ (McGraw,
627). This evaluation is one that has to be made, whatever the outcome.
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Bibliography
Gallagher, Michael. Does Ireland need a new electoral system? Originally
published in Irish Political Studies 2, 1987, pp27-48.
Kavanagh, Adrian. Ireland: Economy and Society lecture’s. National University
of Ireland Maynooth, Nov, 2009.
McGraw, Sean. Managing Change: Party competition in the New Ireland. Irish
political studies, Vol.23, No.4, 627-648.Dec, 2008.
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