Why we will be discussing AV and electoral reform a lot more
Longstanding readers of PB know I have always been an advocate of electoral reform which made me a rarity in the Tory Party however it appears more and more Tories are joining me a the scale of the shellacking on July the 4th is becoming clearer.
The reason I favour electoral reform is that First Past The Post (FPTP) leads to real inequities such as 1983 when the Alliance polled over the quarter of the vote but end up with 3.5% of the MPs. 2015 had various inequities with UKIP polling 12.6% and ending up with just one MP and the reality is that would have been zero MPs if that sole MP wasn’t a defector-incumbent from the Tory Party.
In that election the SNP polled 4.7% and the Lib Dems polled 7.9% and ended up with 56 and 8 MPs respectively and 4th of July 2024 is set to be a date which will live in electoral infamy if we look at the below projection with no tactical voting.
With fairer voting systems I expect turnout to increase a lot, look how turnout was much higher in the Scottish independence and Brexit plebiscites because every vote was equal, under FPTP a lot of the electorate feels their vote is wasted and do not vote.
Switching to AV or STV for Westminster elections will kill Scottish nationalism stone dead as Unionists could vote tactically to keep out the secessionists which should appeal to Labour but if Starmer wins a mahoosive majority with a share of the vote in the 30s then FPTP is here to stay which is likely to lead to discussions about the right standing under one banner in 2028/29.
Starmer was elected as Labour leader under AV and if it is good enough for him then it is good enough for the country.
TSE