Which election are the LibDems campaigning for?
Heads up to our second blogger incoming link, pontificating about the flaws in a LibDem leaflet and how it’s inviting people to vote tactically in the Euro-elections (which has proportional representation) as though it’s a Parliamentary election (which has first past the post).
He’s definitely not impressed.
There are between 3 and 10 representatives for each constituency (region of the country)[link] and they are selected according to the D’Hondt method. It looks like a complicated mathematical algorithm, but it comes up with fair answers.
The LibDems have historically been major supporters of PR (proportional representation), because the current system in the UK parliament is so unfair. It’s ironic that they’re willing to cite this unfairness where they’ve ostensibly got what they wanted.
What are we going to do with all these incoming blog posts? I think a rolling set of back-links on the main site and on each leaflet, like I have on the right hand column of undemocracy.com would be great.
But this will take some log-file magic we don’t have time for yet. Please donate at the button at the top so Richard can afford to keep hacking at this and pay his rent!
I think part of the problem is that people don’t know how – or if – this election differs from any other. It’s been so long since the last Euro election, I honestly can’t remember if I just place a single cross in the box, rank candidates in order of preference, or sacrifice a small chicken.
Electoral systems are conceptually difficult. It’s very easy to explain “She with most votes wins”, it’s harder to explain why that is alway (ever?) fair.