An Effective Electoral system

An Effective Electoral system Disclaimer: This work has been submitted by a student. This is not an example of the work produced by our Law Essay Writing Service . You can view samples of our professional work here . An Effective Electoral system Electoral system or voting system is a system by which voters can make a choice between the options put forward before them. It is often used in an election or when passing a policy referendum. In a democratic state, the electoral process determines who will in charge of the political office. It is the electorate which confers the power to govern and calls government to account. A voting system contains rules for valid voting, and how votes are counted and aggregated to tally the final result   [ 1 ]   . According to Encyclopedia Britannica, electoral system, method and rules of counting votes is used to determine the outcome of elections. Winner may be determined by a plurality, a majority (more than 50% of the vote), an extraordinary majority (a percentage of votes greater than 50%), or unanimity. Candidates for public office may be elected directly or indirectly   [ 2 ]   . In this question, it was asked whether a proper electoral system wo uld be able to uphold rights. Well, first we shall look at what is a proper electoral system? A proper electoral system or also known as a proportional electoral system is a principle which attempts to ensure that the outcome of the election reflects the proportion of support gained by each competing parties. In easier words, a proportional electoral system occurs when there equal amount of votes and seats in the parliament. Proportional electoral system is totally different from the Majoritarian principle. In majoritarian system, party or candidates obtain a plurality of votes within that certain constituency wins that election. Examples of a proportional system are Single Transferrable Vote (STV) and Party List System. A single transferrable vote is a method of election where a voter ranks the candidates in order or preference. This system does not depend on the candidate being grouped into their political parties   [ 3 ]   . The votes would be transferred between candidates i n a manner similar to instant run off voting, but in addition to transferring votes from the candidates who have been eliminated to the next candidate on the list. This method is being applied in Australia, Ireland, Malta, New York, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Toledo, and Boulder.   [ 4 ]   This system is a good system as it prevents votes from being wasted; this is because all the votes given by the voters would be taken into account. And through this system, the citizens of that specific area would have more voice to voice out their opinion and problems in the Parliament, as they have not only one representative but a larger choice of representative. STV also protects the minorities. This is because the minority voters may split their votes across party lines. They can also exercise choice among candidates from the same party. However, STV has disadvantages. One of it is that this system is extremely complex, as it requires a large amount time and meticulous mathematical calculatio ns. Party List System on the other hand, is method in which the voters vote for the parties, rather that voting for the individual candidates   [ 5 ]   . For each of the quota of votes a certain party receives, one of their representatives wins a seat in Parliament. This system is being used in most European democracies and also in most newly democratized countries, like South Africa. This system is simple, easy to understand and it works in any uncomplicated manners. It does not require any complicated and time consuming calculations. This system is extremely fair and equitable from the whole distribution of seats. However, the disadvantage of this system is that no single party can secure an absolute majority in the Parliament. It also destroys the valuable local link between the MP and his constituents, as the constituents may not even know their representative. Party List System also places too much power in the hands of those at the top of the party hierarchy.