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Electoral System

Electoral System. Yubaraj Sangroula. Function of Democracy .

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Electoral System

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  1. Electoral System Yubaraj Sangroula

  2. Function of Democracy • Objective of Electoral System in connection with Democracy is to ‘operationalize’ the latter. Electoral system therefore should not only be viewed as ‘an instrument of exercise of rights’. Electoral system is in this sense a ‘sub-system’ of politics. • The more representative the electoral system, the better chance for sustainability of democracy. And sustainable democracy is a ‘basis for free and fair electoral system”.

  3. Function and sustainability of democracy is ‘dependent on meaningful constitutional scheme that ensures ‘value of votes’ of people, one important ingredient being the ‘same and weightage’ to every legitimate vote. • Another important value of vote is that it provides an instrument to ‘control’ over state’s power by people. In this sense, electoral system is an ingredient of ‘transforming powers to democratic characters’. • Electoral system in conjunction with two types of ‘power sharing schemes’ provides a solid basis for people’s democracy (loktrantra-an expression to elite controlled liberal democracy).

  4. Two Power Sharing Schemes • Horizontal Power Sharing Scheme- In Constitutionalism, it is call ‘Doctrine of Separation of Powers and Check and Balance”- The State’s powers is distributed at all level of State into three different institutions, Legislative, Executive and Judicial. • Vertical Power Sharing Scheme- In constitutionalism, it is called devolution of powers- Federalism, Autonym and Local Governance are institutions.

  5. Horizontal State's Power Executive Legislative Judicial Federality Autonmy Verticle (Nationality) Self-Governance (Geography)

  6. Electoral Process activates all these schemes in favor of ‘people’. It is why in Latin, democracy is defined as DEMOS- People CRACY- System of Running Governance

  7. Forms of Electoral System • ES is a means of choosing between a number of options based on the input of a number of voters • It is considered from number of aspects • Forms of ballots • Tallying method (counting method) • Distribution of voting powers among voters • Constituencies ( how voters are divided into)

  8. Ballots- ES Five Types • On the basis of ballots, the voting system can be classified into • “Ranked” or “Preference” Voting System (Instant runoff, the Borda Count, Condorect Method are grouped in “Ranked” voting system in which voters order the list of options from most to the least preferred). • Range Voting System, in which voters rate option separately on a scale. • Plurality voting system (known as first-past the post), voters select only one option. • Approval Voting system, in which voters as many as they want. • Pluming voting system, in which voters may vote same candidates as much time as they want.

  9. Plurality Voting Ranked Voting Range Voting 1 2 3 4 5 6 5 1 1 1 3 2 2 3 1 3 4 4 4 5 2 5

  10. Approval Voting Pluming Voting 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5

  11. Single Winner Method • Binary Voting System: Voters either vote or do not vote given candidates ( each candidate’s ballot is different) • Ranked voting: each voter ranks the candidates in order of preference. • Rated Voting: voter gives score to each candidate. The most popular single winner voting system is plurality voting. In this winner takes all. Getting most votes wins. And thus only those votes go to winner are ‘valuable’.

  12. The most common ranked voting method is ‘instant runoff voting (IRV), also know as “alternative voting”, or “ preferential voting”. The most preferred by majority is winner. • Borda count: it is a simple ranked voting method in which the options receive points based on their positions. ( for instance, first rank, 10 points, second ranked 7 points, 3 ranked 5 points, fourth ranked 3 points, and fifth ranked 2 points. Points in each ballot are then accumulated, and the highest scorer is declared winner). • Condorect method: It is different with Borda count only in the sense that ‘in this the one receiving the highest number votes opting first choice wins”. • In range voting, each vote receives score (from 0 to 100), and highest scorer wins.

  13. Multiple Winner Method • Non-proportion and semi proportional Method: • Block Voting (plurality at large), Each voter votes (number of options) and selection of top numbers is made. • Single non-transferable vote method. • Single transferable voting method. Because they encourage proportional results without guaranteeing them, they are called semi-proportional.

  14. Proportional Voting: It guarantees the proportionality by making each winning option represent approximately the same number of voters. For example, if the quota is 1000 voters, each elected candidate reflects the opinions of 1000 votes. • Party-list proportional representation, in this voters vote for parties instead of individual candidates. For each quota of votes a party receives, one of their candidates wins a seat. - Seats are divided based on highest average methods, and largest remainder methods.

  15. Largest remainder method- set a particular quota based on the number of voters, for instance, 20,000 voters= 1 seat, so if a party receives 1,00,000 votes receives 5 seats. • Highest Average method- ( such as Sainte Lague method and D’Hondt Method)- votes are divided between parties, such as 1 one million CPN (UML), 32 % of total, so that it receives 64 seats if the parliament has 200 seats. ( The Peace Accord has suggested this method, indirectly).

  16. Peace Accord Confusion • It sounds from very nature the ‘Highest Average Method. There are two ways in it: • Popularity vote, followed by allocation of quota based on ‘highest number of seats from popularity seats”. For example, suppose CPN (UML) wins 100 seats out of 200, it receives 50% in proportionality ( of100 seats remained). It means that CPN UML has total 150 seats in the CA. • Popularity vote followed by average largest remainder i.e. total number of votes (suppose 100 seats is 33% of total voters), UML will receives 100+33 more seats. Which one of this method is not clear. If the proportionality is indirectly fixed considering the highest average of seats obtained, the electoral process ends up at ‘majoritarianism’. This method can not be said ‘mixed proportional’.

  17. Open List and Closed List • Open list is that in which candidates are ‘declared’. • Closed list is that in which party declares the candidates after the result is declared.

  18. Inclusive Electoral Process • Only Largest Remainder Method provides scope of larger inclusiveness. As seats are allocated based on ‘number of voters’. For instance, if one seat is allocated for 100,000 population, and if a party receives 33% of total vote, 33% is proportionately distributed to ‘stakeholders’. Every stakeholder is thus proportionately represented. (For instance, 1 million population of dalit= 10 representatives, reduced to 33% =3 representatives). Everyone thus is proportional. This is not possible in popularity followed by highest average method as marginalized groups cannot make popularity votes).

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