The introduction of some form of proportional representation would give voters more choice and better representation than first past the post does, discuss.

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The introduction of some form of PR would give voters

more choice and better representation than FPTP does, discuss.

Aimée Bremner

        First past the post (FPTP) is the system we in the UK use for our general elections. It is a system that elects the candidate who in the end has the highest number of votes but not necessarily the majority. It can be argued that FPTP is not a democratic system due to the fact that it is not always representative of the majority's choice as shown in the 2005 UK general election when Tony Blair won with merely 40.7% of the vote, not even half of the total votes cast. And now the remaining 59.3% of Britain were not represented. In cases such as these there is indeed need of some kind of new system that would represent more of the county, the majority of the country.

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        However, for some FPTP is in fact a fair system because it means that the winning candidate did get more votes than any of the others and therefore a fair result. Some say that it is easier to understand as it only entails ticking or crossing the box beside the name of your choice and some might not know the four names that you would need to remember under the STV system or the two you would need under the Additional Member System (AMS). It can also be said that FPTP has, unlike either AMS or STV, been tried and ...

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2 Stars - This essay gives a generally competent appraisal of FPTP in comparison to other voting systems - though I think AMS and STV could be exposed to greater scrutiny than this. Also the conclusion is somewhat woolly - terms like proportional and representation are used without their understanding being confidently demonstrated - and the overall arguments against FPTP are weak.