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Proportional electoral system: the basics of political science understanding. Majoritarian and proportional electoral systems

electoral proportional political election

Main types electoral systems are: majoritarian, proportional and mixed

The majoritarian electoral system is characterized by the fact that a candidate (or a list of candidates) who receives the majority of votes provided for by law is considered elected to one or another elective body. Depending on what kind of majority is required to win the election, majoritarian electoral systems are divided into a system of relative majority and absolute majority. Majoritarian majority system is a system in which the candidate who receives the largest number votes, i.e. more votes than any of his rivals. This is the most simple system. It is always effective, as someone always gains a relative majority of votes. The huge advantage of this system is the exclusion of the second round. Under this system, there is usually no mandatory minimum voter turnout. The majority system of an absolute majority requires an absolute majority of the votes of the electorate, i.e. more than half (50% + 1) of their total number. Under this system, a lower threshold for voter participation is usually set. If it is not reached, then the elections are considered invalid.

The advantage of this system, compared with the system of relative majority, is that candidates are considered elected who are supported by a valid majority of the voters who voted, even if this majority was one vote. In the event that no candidate receives more than half of the votes, a second round of elections is held, in which, as a rule, the two candidates receiving the largest number of votes are represented. In the second round, the winner, as a rule, is determined by the relative majority system.

The proportional system assumes the distribution of mandates in proportion to the votes received by parties or party blocs.

Like the majority proportional system, it has varieties. There are two types of it:

  • - voting on closed party lists. In this case, the voter votes for the party list as a whole, without changing the order of the candidates;
  • - - voting with open party lists. In this case, the voter has the right to vote not only for the party list as a whole, but also to rearrange the candidates in the list of his choice.

Majoritarian and proportional systems have their advantages and disadvantages.

Among the advantages of the majoritarian electoral system is that it contains the possibility of forming an effective and stable government. This is achieved by distributing mandates among large, well-organized parties, which, on the basis of the majority, form one-party governments. This system also encourages smaller parties to form blocs or coalitions before elections even begin. Practice shows that the authorities created on this basis are stable and capable of holding firm public policy. Under a majoritarian electoral system, the population votes for specific deputies. As a result, there are strong stable ties between deputies and voters. Since deputies are directly elected by the citizens of a certain constituency and usually count on their re-election, they are more oriented towards their electorate, trying, if possible, to fulfill their election promises or respond to the current requests of voters. In turn, voters know their deputies better than when they are elected on the general party list under a proportional system. At the same time, the majoritarian electoral system also contains a number of significant shortcomings. This system largely distorts the real picture of preferences and thus does not reflect the will of the voters. Under this system, for the distribution of parliamentary mandates, most often only the fact that a candidate receives a relative majority of votes matters. The votes given to all other candidates are not taken into account in the distribution of mandates and in this sense disappear. There is a fairly large opportunity to manipulate the will of voters through "slicing constituencies." Knowing the preferences of voters, it is possible to manipulate the geography of districts. For example, to create purely rural and purely urban districts, or, conversely, to mix them when it is beneficial to one or another candidate, and so on. Thus, the majoritarian electoral system creates the possibility of forming a government based on the majority in parliament, but not supported by the majority of the population. It severely restricts access to parliament for minority representatives, including small parties. As a result, the majoritarian electoral system can weaken the legitimacy of power, cause citizens to distrust political order, passivity in the elections. The proportional electoral system largely eliminates the apparent discrepancy between the number of votes cast for a party and the number of seats it receives. Thus, the proportional electoral system most adequately reflects the political will of the population. The advantages of the proportional electoral system include the fact that in the bodies of power formed with its help a real picture of the alignment of political forces is presented. It creates an opportunity for national, religious minorities and other social strata that form small parties to be represented in government. Thus, the proportional electoral system provides feedback between the state and organizations civil society, contributes to the legitimization of power, activates the participation of the population in elections. The disadvantages of the proportional electoral system include the relatively less stable government. The broad representation of various political forces in parliament, which is characteristic of this system, very often does not allow any party to form a one-party government and encourages the formation of coalitions. The unification of parties that are heterogeneous in their goals can lead to an aggravation of contradictions between them, to the collapse of coalitions and the resignation of the government. Since under a proportional electoral system voting is carried out not for specific candidates, but for lists of parties and associations, the direct connection between deputies and voters is very weak. This circumstance also contributes to greater dependence of deputies on their parties than on voters. Such lack of freedom can adversely affect the process of adopting important laws, the deputy most often votes in the interests of the party and its leaders, rather than his voters. In order to overcome the excessive party fragmentation of the parliament, which will limit the possibility of small parties or representatives of extremely radical and sometimes extremist forces penetrating into it, many countries use the so-called “electoral thresholds” that establish the minimum votes required to obtain deputy mandates. AT different countries using a proportional system, this “threshold” fluctuates. So in Israel it is 1%, in Denmark - 2%, in Ukraine - 3%, in Italy, Hungary - 4%, in Germany, Russia - 5%, in Georgia - 7%, in Turkey - 10%. Candidates of those parties or party blocs that have not overcome this “threshold” are automatically excluded from the list of applicants. The high "electoral threshold" sometimes leads to the fact that a significant part of the voters is not represented in parliament. Minimal - essentially turns out to be ineffective. In a number of countries, in order to connect positive sides various systems and to minimize their shortcomings, electoral systems are created mixed type. In which, in one way or another, elements of the majority and proportional systems are combined. The practical implementation of the mixed electoral system in the voting process is that each voter receives two ballots. Accordingly, he has two votes: with one he votes for a specific candidate running in this constituency, with the other - for a political party, an association.

Attempts to maximize the advantages of basic electoral systems and level their shortcomings lead to the emergence of mixed electoral systems. The essence of the mixed electoral system lies in the fact that some of the deputies to the same representative body of power are elected by the majority system, and the other part - by the proportional system. At the same time, the creation of majoritarian electoral districts (most often single-member, less often multi-member) and electoral districts (with a proportional system with multi-member districts) or a single nationwide multi-member electoral district for voting on party lists of candidates is expected. Accordingly, the voter acquires the right to simultaneously vote for a candidate (candidates) running in the majoritarian district on a personal basis and for a political party (list of candidates from a political party). In reality, during the voting procedure, the voter receives at least two ballots: one for voting for a specific candidate in the majoritarian district, the other for voting for a party.

Therefore, a mixed electoral system is a system of formation representative bodies power, in which part of the deputies is elected on a personal basis in majoritarian districts, and the other part - on a party basis according to the proportional principle of representation.

Mixed electoral systems are usually distinguished by the nature of the relationship between the elements of the majoritarian and proportional systems used in them. On this basis, two types of mixed systems are distinguished:

  • * a mixed unbound electoral system, in which the distribution of mandates by the majoritarian system does not depend in any way on the results of elections by the proportional system (the above examples are just examples of a mixed unbound electoral system);
  • * mixed tie-in electoral system, in which the distribution of seats by majoritarian system depends on the results of elections by proportional system. In this case, the candidates in the majoritarian districts are nominated by the political parties participating in the elections under the proportional system. The mandates received by the parties in the majoritarian districts are distributed depending on the results of the elections according to the proportional system. So, in Germany, in the elections to the Bundestag, the main vote is the vote for the state lists of parties. However, German voters also vote for majoritarian candidates. A political party that has received more votes than the number prescribed by law receives the right to represent its candidates who have won in majoritarian districts (“transitional mandates”).

The concept of an electoral system consists of the entire set of legal norms governing the procedure for granting voting rights, holding elections and determining the results of voting. The term “electoral system” also has a truncated meaning: when it is used in relation to the procedure for determining voting results. In this narrow sense, proportional and majoritarian electoral systems are distinguished. Within these basic systems, there are very significant features in each country, often establishing essentially a completely separate and unique electoral system.

Historically, the first electoral system was the majoritarian system, which is based on the principle of the majority (French majorite - majority): those candidates who receive the established majority of votes are considered elected. Depending on what kind of majority it is (relative, absolute or qualified), the system has varieties. Below, I will take a closer look at these varieties.

Already at the dawn of the formation of the constitutional order, the ideas of proportional representation began to be put forward. political associations, at which the number of mandates received by such an association corresponds to the number of votes cast for its candidates. The practically proportional system was first used in Belgium in 1889. By the beginning of the twentieth century, there were 152 of its varieties. Now it exists in more than 60 countries.

Since the beginning of the last century, compromise ideas have been put forward to ensure at least partial representation of the minority - a limited vote, a system of a single non-transferable vote, a cumulative vote, characterized as semi-proportional systems. Some of them are used today, as they allow in one way or another to reduce the defects of the majority system, without going over to more or less pure proportionality.

In the interests of combining the advantages of the majoritarian and proportional systems and eliminating the inherent disadvantages of each of them, along with a combination of both systems, in some countries, in some others, the system of a single transferable vote began to be used.

The establishment of this or that electoral system is the result of a subjective choice, which is often determined by the balance of political forces in the legislature. Some or other methods of determining the results of elections often turn out to be more beneficial for individual parties, and it is natural that they strive for the inclusion in the electoral legislation of precisely these methods that are beneficial to them. For example, in 1993, Italy moved from a proportional system to a mixed, predominantly majoritarian system, and New Zealand, - vice versa, from majority to proportional. It is noteworthy that in both countries this issue was decided by a national referendum.

As we already know, there are two main types of electoral systems in Russia: proportional and majoritarian.

The first means that deputy mandates in parliamentary elections are distributed in proportion to the votes cast, and the second - the distribution of mandates by electoral districts based on the majority of votes cast (absolute majority system, when the winner is the candidate who received 50% of the votes plus one from the voted voters or the system of relative majority, when the winner becomes the one who received the votes simply more than any other candidate).

The majority system has single-member constituencies, where a simple majority of votes wins. This happens in the USA, Great Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, India and Japan.

Single-member constituencies have the advantage of being able to organize dozens of smaller parties around one of the two traditional parties - Conservative or Labor, Republican or Democratic.

In countries with a proportional electoral system, multiple constituencies are used, and seats in parliament are distributed in proportion to the percentage of votes received in a given constituency. In Anglo-American single-member districts, the winner takes all the seats. In multi-member constituencies, the winner receives only the percentage of votes due to him.

The proportional electoral system does not give parties any reward for sticking together. Moreover, proportional representation even encourages splits in parties and movements. In the elections of December 12, 1993 to the Federal Assembly in Russia, the movement "Democratic Russia" was represented by four small parties.

Proportional-majority elections in one round under a two-party system allow the leading parties to rise to the top in turn state power. Majoritarian elections in two rounds allow each party, even a small one, to act independently at the first stage, which creates conditions for the formation of a multi-party system. Proportional voting encourages ambition political leaders to the creation of new parties. However, in elections, their intentions are limited to getting 5 percent or more of the votes. Without typing them, the party does not have the right to be represented in parliament. The multi-party system of Russia in all these respects is still in the formative stage.

In Russian literature on legal matters electoral system offered the following alternative. The fact is that, according to Vadim Belotserkovsky: the small size of the composition of the parties and at the same time their large number makes their dependence on the nomenklatura-mafia circles, on state power and those associated with it, inevitable. commercial structures to which the dwarf parties must bow. With their own strength and money, it is almost impossible for them to break into parliament. Under these conditions, the majority of deputies is under strict control said circles structures and democracy are out of the question. There is no one to represent the people in parliament. In this situation, a system of elections based on the principle of production could provide a way out of the impasse. That is, when deputies are nominated and elected at enterprises, institutions and associations of workers - "individual farmers" - farmers, writers, handicraftsmen, lawyers, private entrepreneurs. In other words, we are talking about returning to the system of elections of the primordial Soviets, but not class, but on public basis so that all sectors of society are represented in legislatures authorities. Private entrepreneurs - in proportion to the share of the private sector in the gross product.

With production-based elections, candidates and parties no longer need to seek support from the authorities and financial institutions. For the election campaign at the place of work, candidates do not need a penny! No less important is also that the voters will always know who they are voting for - after all, it will be their colleagues! - they will easily be able to control the deputies elected by them and recall them if the deputies begin to protect other people's interests. In territorial elections, constituency voters, working in various places, they are practically incapable of organizing themselves to control the deputies. With elections on a production basis, it will no longer matter how many parties there are in the country, and the problem of a quorum of voters will also disappear. The falsification of results will also become impossible.

Thus, elections on the basis under discussion are capable of undermining the dominance of the nomenklatura and the mafia over the legislature, and after it - over the executive and judiciary. The system of elections based on the principle of production is already well established in the world. They are used in the formation of central boards of large concerns with many branches, boards of cooperative associations and federations of enterprises owned by employees. The opinion is now spreading in the world that everywhere the party-territorial system of elections is drawing into a crisis, does not respond modern concepts about democracy and should be reformed in the direction of more direct representation of different social strata.

Majoritarian electoral system

The majoritarian electoral system is one of the types of electoral systems in which candidates who receive the majority of votes in the constituency where they are running are considered elected; used in many countries, including Russia.

The majority electoral system has its own varieties and consists of the following. The territory of the state or representative body is divided into territorial units - more often one is elected from each, but sometimes two or more deputies. Each candidate is nominated and elected in his personal capacity, although it may be indicated which party, movement he represents. If, in order to win, a candidate needs to gain not only a majority of votes, but also at least half of the number of voters who took part in the vote, then in this case it is customary to speak of an absolute majority majoritarian electoral system. If the candidate who receives more votes than his rivals is considered the winner, and it does not matter how much it is from the number of voters who voted, such a system is usually called the majoritarian electoral system of relative majority. If a certain number of votes is required to win (for example, 25, 30, 40% 2/3 of the number of voters participating in the elections) - this is a majoritarian electoral system of a qualified majority.

Voting according to the majority electoral system of the relative majority is carried out in one round, according to other varieties - in two rounds. Two candidates advance to the second round largest number votes, and the winner can be considered the one who received a certain number of votes or more votes than the opponent.

The advantages of the majoritarian electoral system are that it is effective - it gives to the winners; in addition, voting is subject - the voter gives preference to a particular person; deputies must maintain constant contact with voters, hoping for their support in the next elections. The disadvantage of the majoritarian electoral system is that votes cast for non-winning candidates are lost, and the winner in this case has the support of another clear minority of voters, i.e. we can talk about the low representativeness of such a deputy.

AT Russian Federation for elections in State Duma Since 1993, the principle of a combination of proportional and majoritarian electoral systems has been applied. At the same time, the majoritarian electoral system looks like this: it was established that 225 (i.e. half) of the deputies of the State Duma are elected on the basis of the majoritarian electoral system in single-member (one district - one mandate) constituencies formed in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation on the basis of a single norm of representation, for with the exception of electoral districts formed in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the number of voters in which is less than the average number of voters established by the Central Election Commission for a single-mandate district. To win in the district, you need to get more votes than other candidates, i.е. it is a majoritarian electoral system of relative majority. Elections are considered valid if at least 25% of registered voters voted.

According to the majoritarian electoral system, elections were held for half of the deputies of the State Duma in 1993 and 1995. It may be recalled that in 1993 deputies were also elected to the Federation Council - two from each subject of the Russian Federation. A majoritarian electoral system of relative majority was used, with the difference that the constituency had two mandates; the constituency was the territory of each subject of the Russian Federation. As for the elections of representative bodies of power of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, in 1993 they were given the opportunity to introduce both majoritarian and mixed majoritarian-proportional systems. However, in all constituent entities of the Russian Federation, elections of bodies of representative power are held in constituencies. Some constituent entities simultaneously formed two types of such constituencies: ordinary (in terms of the number of voters) and administrative-territorial (i.e., a district or city, respectively, became a district, and a deputy was elected from it to the parliament of a subject of the Russian Federation). In elections to representative bodies of local self-government (i.e. assemblies, dumas of cities and regions), deputies are elected according to the majoritarian electoral system. At the same time, quite often the entire territory is a single multi-member constituency. However, each deputy is elected in his personal capacity, which is exactly what is characteristic of the majoritarian electoral system.

Qualified Majority Majoritarian System

Under this system, the candidate (list of candidates) who receives a qualified majority of votes is considered elected. The qualified majority is established by law and, in any case, exceeds the absolute majority. Such a system is extremely rare, since it is even less effective than the absolute majority system.

For example, in Chile, the Chamber of Deputies (lower house of parliament) is elected from two-member constituencies. The party that gathered in the constituency 2/3 of total number valid votes. Receives both mandates from the district. If such a majority is not received by any of the parties, the mandates are transferred to the two parties that collected the largest number of votes.

Until recently, 65% of the vote was required to elect Italian senators running in single-member constituencies. In practice, as a rule, none of the candidates received such a majority, constituencies were united on a regional scale, and the distribution of mandates was carried out according to the rules of the proportional representation system discussed below. After the April 1993 referendum, single-seat constituencies for elections to the Senate (such constituencies are also envisaged for elections to the Chamber of Deputies) established a majoritarian system of relative majority.

proportional electoral system

The proportional electoral system is one of the types of electoral systems used in many countries, including Russia.

The proportional electoral system has many varieties, but its essence is as follows. The territory of a state or a representative body is declared a single constituency. Political parties and movements, their unions put forward lists of their candidates. The voter votes for one of these lists. The victory in this case is proportional to the number of votes given for the corresponding list of the electoral association, and the calculation is often carried out only on the lists that received more than 5% (for example, Germany, the Russian Federation; there may be another percentage - in particular, 4% in Sweden, 3 - in Argentina, 2 in Denmark, 1% in Israel). The total number of votes of voters who took part in the voting is divided by the total number of deputy mandates filled under the proportional electoral system. It turns out selective private. This establishes how many parties, movements received seats in the representative body. Within the list, candidates receive mandates according to their order, starting from the first. If the list is split into central part and regional groups, candidates from the central part go first to parliament. Candidates from regional groups receive mandates in proportion to the votes cast for the given list in the respective region.

The advantage of the proportional electoral system is that the votes of voters do not disappear (with the exception of those cast for the list that did not overcome the 5% bar). The downside of the proportional electoral system is that here the voter chooses, as it were, abstract persons - he most often knows the leader of the party, movement, several activists, but the rest are unknown to him. In addition, the elected deputies do not have a direct connection with the voters of a particular constituency, as in the majority system. In order to take into account the interests of voters, many countries break the list into territorial parts. Some countries have abandoned linked lists (when the voter votes for the list as a whole) and switched to a free list system - the voter has the right to give preference to candidates from the list of a party, movement, and even supplement the list. Many deputies, politicians and researchers consider the high percentage barrier to be a disadvantage of the proportional electoral system.

The proportional electoral system is used in elections of the entire parliament (Denmark, Portugal, Luxembourg, Latvia), or only the lower house (Australia, Austria, Belgium, Poland, Brazil), or? composition of the lower chamber (Germany, RF).

In the Russian Federation, the proportional electoral system is used in the elections of half - 225 deputies - of the State Duma. Each electoral association, block can include up to 270 people in the federal electoral list of candidates for deputies. It is possible to single out the central part of the lists and distribute the rest of the candidates by regions, consisting of groups or individual subjects of the Russian Federation. Only electoral associations, blocs that received more than 5% of the votes of the voters who took part in the voting, participate in the distribution of deputy mandates. In the 1995 elections, these were the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, the Liberal Democratic Party, the Our Home Russia movement and Yabloko.

Electoral quotient - the number of votes of voters per one deputy mandate. In Russia, it is used when counting votes and determining the number of seats provided to parties and movements that have received deputy mandates and put forward their electoral lists in elections to the State Duma in a federal constituency.

The proportional electoral system is one of the varieties of the electoral system used in many countries, including the Russian Federation.

The proportional electoral system was first used in the Belgian elections in 1899.

proportional electoral system

The territory of the state or representative body is declared unified. Political parties and/or political movements put forward lists of their candidates. The voter votes for one of these lists. distributed in proportion to the votes received by each party.

Many countries have a threshold, expressed as a percentage of all votes. For example, in Russia, the passing percentage in the elections to the State Duma in the last elections was 7%, and in the elections in 2016 it will be 5%. The five percent threshold exists in almost all countries, but in some countries the percentage is lower. For example, in Sweden - 4%, in Argentina - 3%, in Denmark - 2%, and in Israel - 1%.

The proportional system can be applied both in elections of the entire parliament (for example, in Denmark, Luxembourg, Latvia, Portugal), and only the lower house (for example, in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Poland) or half of the lower house (for example, in Germany until 2007 and since 2016 in the Russian Federation).

Varieties of the proportional electoral system

There are two main types of proportional electoral system - closed party lists and open party lists.

Closed party list - when a voter votes only for a party, and not for an individual candidate. The party receives a number of seats in proportion to the votes received. The mandates won in the elections are distributed within the party list among the party members, according to their order in the list. If the list is divided into the central part and regional groups, candidates from the central part go first. Candidates from regional groups receive mandates in proportion to the votes cast for the party list in the respective region.

This type of proportional electoral system is used in the Russian Federation, in Israel, in the countries South Africa, during elections in European Parliament as well as in all countries of the European Union.

An open party list is when a voter votes not only for a party, but also for a specific party member from the list. Depending on the method, the voter can vote either for a particular party member, or for two, or indicate the order of preference of candidates in the list.

This type of proportional electoral system is used in Finland, the Netherlands, Brazil and Democratic Republic Congo.

Advantages of the proportional electoral system

  1. The advantage of a proportional electoral system, in contrast to, is that the votes of voters do not disappear. Except, of course, for those votes cast for parties that did not pass the percentage barrier. Therefore, the most fair application of the proportional system is considered to be elections in Israel.
  2. Proportional electoral system allows for representation political parties according to their popularity with voters. At the same time, this opportunity is not lost in the minority.
  3. Voters do not vote for a particular candidate who has more chances, but for the direction they share.
  4. In countries where they apply open listings, the influence of parties on the personal composition of their representatives in parliament is decreasing.
  5. Less likely to get into the Parliament of representatives with financial leverage pressure on voters.

Disadvantages of the proportional electoral system

  1. The main disadvantage of the proportional electoral system is the partial loss of the principle of democracy, the loss of communication between deputies and voters and/or specific regions.
  2. In countries where a closed party list is used, the voter votes for an abstract candidate. Most often, the voter knows only the leader of the party and a few of its prominent representatives.
  3. With closed party lists, “locomotive technology” is also used - when at the beginning of the list there are popular personalities (for example, TV and movie stars), who then refuse mandates in favor of unknown party members.
  4. Closed party lists allow the party leader to determine the order of candidates, which can lead to both dictatorship within the party and internal splits due to unfair competition among party members.
  5. The disadvantage is the high percentage barrier that does not allow a new and/or small batch to pass.
  6. In a parliamentary republic, the government is formed by the party with the majority of seats. But with a proportional system, there is a high probability that one of the parties will not have a majority, which leads to the need to create a coalition of ideological opponents. Such a government may be unable to reform due to internal divisions.
  7. A simple voter does not always understand the system of distribution of mandates, which means that they may not trust the elections and refuse to participate in them. In many countries, the level of voter turnout ranges from 40-60% of the total number of citizens eligible to vote. This means that such elections do not reflect the true picture of preferences and/or the need for reforms.

Proportional electoral system in Russia

In Russia, the proportional electoral system is used in elections to the State Duma and in elections to deputies of the legislative (representative) bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

From 2016, half of the deputies (225) of the State Duma of the Russian Federation will be elected in single-mandate majoritarian districts, and the other half - in a proportional system with a percentage threshold of 5%. From 2007 to 2011, all 450 deputies were elected from a single constituency under a proportional system with a percentage barrier of 7%.

Topic Electoral systems

1.general characteristics electoral systems.

2.Majority electoral system.

3. Proportional electoral system.

4. Mixed electoral system.

General characteristics of electoral systems

True democracies are political systems in which access to power and the right to make decisions are based on the results of free general elections. AT modern state the main form of elections is voting, which can be seen as the selection of the most deserving. The main function of elections is the translation of decisions made by voters, i.e. their votes into constitutional government powers and deputy mandates. The methods of counting votes and the procedure for distributing deputy mandates are the electoral systems.

The electoral system is the methods and means by which the deputy mandates are distributed among the candidates for the relevant government posts according to the results of the vote. The ways of translating the decisions of voters into powers of power and parliamentary seats are the characteristics of the electoral system:

v The quantitative criterion by which the results of the elections are determined - one winner or several;

v Type of constituencies - single-member or multi-member;

v Type of voter list and how to complete it.

Based various combinations These features distinguish 2 types of electoral systems: majoritarian and proportional. The method of voting in the election of candidates and the method of distribution of parliamentary mandates and government powers are the main factors that distinguish one electoral system from another. The choice in favor of a particular system in a particular country is dictated by historical conditions, specific tasks political development and cultural and political traditions. If in Great Britain and the USA there has been a majority system for centuries, then in continental Europe - proportional

Majoritarian electoral system

Majoritarian electoral system - general type electoral systems based on the principle of majority and one winner in determining the results of voting. The main goal of the majority system is to determine the winner and a cohesive majority capable of pursuing a succession policy. Votes cast for losing candidates simply don't count. The majority system is used in 83 countries of the world: USA, UK, Japan, Canada.

There are 3 types of majority system:

  • Majoritarian system of absolute majority;
  • Majoritarian system of simple (relative) majority;
  • Qualified Majority Majority System.

Majoritarian system of absolute majority- a method of determining the results of voting, in which an absolute majority of votes (50% + 1) is required to obtain a mandate, i.e. a number exceeding by at least one vote half the number of voters in the given constituency (usually the number of those who voted). The advantage of this system lies in the ease of determining the results, and also in the fact that the winner really represents the absolute majority of voters. The disadvantage is that there is a possibility that there is no absolute majority, and therefore no winner, which leads to a second vote until an absolute majority is reached. In order to reduce costs in individual countries a re-ballot mechanism is introduced, which means determining the winner in a two-round voting: in the 1st round, an absolute majority is required to win, in the 2nd round, a simple majority is required, i.e. you just need to get ahead of your competitors. Majoritarian system of relative majority- a way to determine the results of voting, in which it is required to collect a simple or relative majority of votes, i.e. more than opponents. The advantage of this system is the obligatory presence of the result. The disadvantage is a significant degree of unaccounted for votes. This system originated in the UK and operates in 43 countries. Qualified Majority Majoritarian System- this is a method of determining the results of voting, in which a candidate must collect a clearly defined number of votes to win, always more than half of the voters living in the district (2/3, ¾, etc.). Due to the complexity of the implementation, this system is not used today.

Advantages

2. Certainty of the result, the competitive nature of the elections;

3. Close connection of the deputy with the constituency;

4. Political responsibility of the deputy to the voters;

5. The relationship of national problems with local ones;

6. Creation of a stable one-party government and a monolithic majority in parliament, capable of working together and pursuing a successive policy;

Flaws

1. Weak representation;

3. There is a possibility of abuse, manipulation of constituencies;

4. The winner may not actually have a national majority;

5. Exclusion of third parties from governmental and parliamentary coalitions, despite consistently high voting shares.

proportional electoral system

A proportional electoral system is a method of determining the results of voting, which is based on the principle of distributing seats in elected bodies in proportion to the number of votes received by each party or list of candidates.

The proportional system was first used in Belgium in 1884. It is currently used in 57 countries: Israel, Austria, Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands.

Distinctive features of the proportional system:

ü Strict correspondence between the number of votes in elections and representation in parliament.

ü Emphasis on the representation of various groups of the population in government bodies.

ü Presence of multi-member constituencies.

ü Fair character, because there are no losers or lost votes.

There are 2 main types of proportional system:

  • Proportional party list system
  • Proportional voting system.

Proportional party list system. Its peculiarity lies in the presence of multi-member constituencies (the entire territory of the state can act as a constituency) and the formation of party lists as a way to nominate candidates. As a result, electoral competitors are not individual candidates, but political parties. Voters, on the other hand, vote for the party, i.e. for her party list and all at once, despite the fact that it was created without their participation. The mandates are distributed among the parties in accordance with total votes received throughout the constituency. Technically, the mechanism for the distribution of mandates is as follows: the sum of votes cast for all parties is divided by the number of seats in parliament. The result obtained is a "selective meter", i.e. the number of votes required to win one seat in Parliament. How many times this meter will meet the number of votes received by the party, so many seats it will receive in parliament. In order to prevent extremist parties from entering parliament, as well as to avoid party fragmentation and inefficient parliamentary activity, a percentage threshold is set. The parties that overcome it are admitted to the distribution of seats, the rest are excluded. In Ukraine, the barrier is 4%, in Russia - 5%, in Turkey - 10%. Proportional voting system(Ireland, Australia). Unlike the party list system, where voting is carried out for parties, this system allows the voter to choose among the candidates from the party he supports. Candidates who receive a sufficient number of votes are declared elected; the extra votes cast for them are transferred to the candidates with the shortest votes. Such a system is fair to voters, taking into account the opinion of all.

Advantages

2. Contributes to the formation of a multi-party system;

3. Stimulates coalition actions and coalition parliamentary majority;

4. Protects the interests of political minorities;

5. More or less clear party identification of voters.

Flaws

1. Difficulty in determining results;

2. Transfer to the parties of the right to appoint deputies;

3. There is no connection between deputies and constituencies;

4. Weak influence of voters on government decisions;

5. Tendency towards the establishment of a party oligarchy;

6. Providing advantages to small parties, which can lead to the destruction of large ones.

Mixed electoral system

One of the options for the electoral system is a mixed electoral system, which is designed to neutralize the shortcomings and enhance the advantages of both systems. This system is characterized by the combination of elements of proportional and majority systems. As a rule, there are 2 types of mixed systems:

  • A mixed system of a structural type - involves a bicameral parliament, where one chamber (consisting of representatives of administrative-territorial units) is elected by the majority system, and the second (lower) - by the proportional system.
  • A mixed system of a linear type - a unicameral parliament is possible, where some of the deputies are elected by a majoritarian system, and the rest by a proportional system.

On the one hand, they provide an opportunity for people with political ambitions and organizational skills to be elected to government bodies, and on the other hand, they involve the general public in political life and allow ordinary citizens to influence political decisions.

electoral system broadly referred to as the system public relations associated with the formation of elected bodies of power.

The electoral system includes two main elements:

  • theoretical (suffrage);
  • practical (selective process).

Suffrage is the right of citizens to directly participate in the formation of elected institutions of power, i.e. elect and be elected. Electoral law is also understood as the legal norms governing the procedure for granting citizens the right to participate in elections and the method of forming government bodies. The foundations of modern Russian electoral law are enshrined in the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

Electoral process is a set of measures for the preparation and conduct of elections. It includes, on the one hand, the election campaigns of candidates, and on the other hand, the work of election commissions to form an elected body of power.

AT electoral process distinguish the following components:

  • appointment of elections;
  • organization of electoral districts, districts, sections;
  • formation of election commissions;
  • voter registration;
  • nomination and registration of candidates;
  • preparation of ballots and absentee ballots;
  • election campaign; about holding a vote;
  • counting of votes and determination of voting results.

Principles of Democratic Elections

In order to ensure the fairness and effectiveness of the electoral system, the procedure for conducting elections must be democratic.

Democratic principles of organizing and conducting elections are as follows:

  • universality - all adult citizens have the right to participate in elections, regardless of their gender, race, nationality, religion, property status, etc.;
  • equality of votes of citizens: each voter has one vote;
  • direct and secret ballot;
  • availability of alternative candidates, competitiveness of elections;
  • publicity of the elections;
  • truthful information of voters;
  • lack of administrative, economic and political pressure;
  • equality of opportunity for political parties and candidates;
  • voluntariness of participation in elections;
  • legal response to any cases of violation of the electoral law;
  • frequency and regularity of elections.

Features of the electoral system of the Russian Federation

In the Russian Federation, the established electoral system regulates the procedure for holding elections for the head of state, deputies of the State Duma and regional authorities.

Candidate for the post President of the Russian Federation may be a citizen of Russia at least 35 years old, living in Russia for at least 10 years. A candidate cannot be a person who has a foreign citizenship or has a visible residence, an unexpunged and outstanding conviction. The same person cannot hold the office of the President of the Russian Federation for more than two terms in a row. The President is elected for six years on the basis of universal, equal and direct suffrage by secret ballot. Presidential elections are held on a majoritarian basis. The President is considered elected if in the first round of voting for one of the candidates the majority of voters who took part in the voting voted. If this does not happen, a second round is appointed, in which the two candidates who received the largest number of votes in the first round participate, and the one who received more votes of the voters who took part in the voting than the other registered candidate wins.

Deputy of the State Duma a citizen of the Russian Federation who has reached the age of 21 and has the right to participate in elections has been elected. 450 deputies are elected to the State Duma from party lists on a proportional basis. In order to overcome the electoral threshold and receive mandates, a party must gain a certain percentage of the votes. The term of office of the State Duma is five years.

Citizens of Russia also participate in elections to state bodies and elected positions in subjects of the Russian Federation. According to the Constitution of the Russian Federation. the system of regional state authorities is established by the subjects of the Federation independently in accordance with the fundamentals of the constitutional order and the current legislation. The law establishes special days for voting in elections to state authorities of the constituent entities of the Federation and local governments - the second Sunday of March and the second Sunday of October.

Types of electoral systems

Under the electoral system in the narrow sense is understood the procedure for determining the results of voting, which depends mainly on the principle vote counting.

On this basis, there are three main types of electoral systems:

  • majoritarian;
  • proportional;
  • mixed.

Majoritarian electoral system

In conditions majoritarian system (from fr. majorite - majority) wins the candidate who received the majority of votes. Majority can be absolute (if a candidate receives more than half of the votes) and relative (if one candidate receives more votes than another). The disadvantage of the majoritarian system is that it can reduce the chances of small parties to gain representation in government.

The majoritarian system means that in order to be elected, a candidate or party must receive a majority of the votes of the voters of the district or the whole country, while those who have collected a minority of votes do not receive mandates. Majoritarian electoral systems are divided into absolute majority systems, which are more commonly used in presidential elections and in which the winner must receive more than half of the votes (minimum - 50% of the votes plus one vote), and relative majority systems (UK, Canada, USA, France, Japan and etc.), when it is necessary to get ahead of other contenders to win. When applying the absolute majority principle, if no candidate receives more than half of the votes, a second round of elections is held, in which the two candidates who receive the largest number of votes are presented (sometimes all candidates who receive more than the established minimum number of votes in the first round are admitted to the second round). ).

proportional electoral system

proportional The electoral system involves the voting of voters according to party lists. After the elections, each of the parties receives a number of mandates proportional to the percentage of votes gained (for example, a party that receives 25% of the votes gets 1/4 of the seats). In parliamentary elections, it is usually established percentage barrier(electoral threshold) that a party needs to overcome in order to get their candidates into parliament; as a result of this, small parties that do not have a wide social support, do not receive mandates. The votes for the parties that did not overcome the threshold are distributed among the parties that won the elections. A proportional system is possible only in multi-mandate constituencies, i.e. where several deputies are elected and the voter votes for each of them personally.

The essence of the proportional system is in the distribution of mandates in proportion to the number of votes received or by electoral coalitions. The main advantage of this system is the representation of parties in elected bodies in accordance with their real popularity among voters, which makes it possible to more fully express the interests of all groups, to intensify the participation of citizens in elections and in general. In order to overcome excessive party fragmentation of the parliament, to limit the possibility of penetration into it by representatives of radical or even extremist forces, many countries use protective barriers, or thresholds that establish the minimum number of votes necessary to obtain deputy mandates. Usually it ranges from 2 (Denmark) to 5% (Germany) of all votes cast. Parties that did not convene necessary minimum votes, do not receive a single mandate.

Comparative analysis of proportional and electoral systems

Majority an electoral system in which the candidate with the most votes wins contributes to the formation of a bipartisan or "bloc" party system, while proportional, under which parties with the support of only 2-3% of voters can get their candidates into parliament, reinforces the fragmentation and fragmentation of political forces, the preservation of many small parties, including extremist ones.

Bipartism assumes the presence of two large, approximately equal in influence political parties, which alternately replace each other in power by winning a majority of seats in parliament, elected by direct universal suffrage.

Mixed electoral system

Many countries are currently using mixed systems, combining elements of the majoritarian and proportional electoral systems. Thus, in Germany, one half of the deputies of the Bundestag are elected according to the majoritarian system of relative majority, the second - according to the proportional system. A similar system was used in Russia in the elections to the State Duma in 1993 and 1995.

mixed the system involves a combination of majoritarian and proportional systems; for example, one part of the parliament is elected by the majority system, and the second - by the proportional system; in this case, the voter receives two ballots and casts one vote for the party list, and the second for a specific candidate elected on a majoritarian basis.

AT recent decades some organizations (, green parties, etc.) use consensual electoral system. It has a positive orientation, that is, it is not focused on criticizing the opponent, but on finding the most acceptable candidate or electoral platform for all. In practice, this is expressed in the fact that the voter votes not for one, but for all (necessarily more than two) candidates and ranks their list in order of their own preferences. Five points are given for first place, four for second, three for third, two for fourth, and one for fifth. After voting, the points received are summed up, and the winner is determined by their number.