Understanding Electoral Reform

Author : Reuven Y. Hazan,Monique Leyenaar
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 282 pages
File Size : 55,5 Mb
Release : 2014-06-03
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781317978916

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Understanding Electoral Reform by Reuven Y. Hazan,Monique Leyenaar Pdf

The field of elections and electoral systems, and particularly electoral reform, has exhibited tremendous growth and cross-national appeal over the last two decades. However, beyond an increased knowledge of voting rules and their consequences for political representation, little attention has been devoted to the question of why electoral systems have recently undergone substantial change in several liberal democracies. This book addresses several new approaches to electoral reform. First, the scope of the study of electoral reform has been expanded. Second, contrary to previous studies of electoral reform, the conviction that the determinants of reform can be explained by one single approach has been replaced by a belief in a more comprehensive framework for analysis. Third, we move beyond political parties (acting in parliament and government) as the most significant source of electoral reform. Fourth, a focus on the determinants of electoral reform allows us to include motivations and objectives of electoral reform. A final advancement in the study of electoral reform is the inclusion of countries other than ‘established’ democracies. This book was published as a special issue of West European Politics.

Author : Andrew Potter,Daniel Weinstock,Peter Loewen
Publisher : McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 48,6 Mb
Release : 2017-04-01
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780773550827

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Should We Change How We Vote? by Andrew Potter,Daniel Weinstock,Peter Loewen Pdf

During the 2015 federal election, the Liberal Party pledged that, if elected, they would end the “first past the post” electoral system, where whichever candidate receives the most votes wins a riding even if they have not received a majority of all votes cast. In early 2017, the Liberals reneged on their campaign promise, declaring that there was a lack of public consensus about how to reform the system. Despite the broken promise – and because of the public outcry – discussions about electoral reform will continue around the country. Challenging the idea that first past the post is obsolete, Should We Change How We Vote? urges Canadians to make sure they understand their electoral system before making drastic changes to it. The contributors to this volume assert that there is perhaps no institution more misunderstood and misrepresented than the Canadian electoral system – praised by some for ensuring broad regional representation in Ottawa, but criticized by others for allowing political parties with less than half the popular vote to assume more than half the seats in Parliament. They consider not only how the system works, but also its flaws and its advantages, and whether or not electoral reform is legitimate without a referendum. An essential guide to the crucial and ongoing debate about the country’s future, Should We Change How We Vote? asks if there are alternative reforms that would be easier to implement than a complete overhaul of the electoral system.

Author : Alan Renwick
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 327 pages
File Size : 43,6 Mb
Release : 2010-02-04
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781139486774

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The Politics of Electoral Reform by Alan Renwick Pdf

Elections lie at the heart of democracy, and this book seeks to understand how the rules governing those elections are chosen. Drawing on both broad comparisons and detailed case studies, it focuses upon the electoral rules that govern what sorts of preferences voters can express and how votes translate into seats in a legislature. Through detailed examination of electoral reform politics in four countries (France, Italy, Japan, and New Zealand), Alan Renwick shows how major electoral system changes in established democracies occur through two contrasting types of reform process. Renwick rejects the simple view that electoral systems always straightforwardly reflect the interests of the politicians in power. Politicians' motivations are complex; politicians are sometimes unable to pursue reforms they want; occasionally, they are forced to accept reforms they oppose. The Politics of Electoral Reform shows how voters and reform activists can have real power over electoral reform.

Author : Canada. Royal Commission on Electoral Reform and Party Financing
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 440 pages
File Size : 42,7 Mb
Release : 1991
Category : Campaign funds
ISBN : MINN:31951P00041500U

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Reforming Electoral Democracy: What Canadians told us by Canada. Royal Commission on Electoral Reform and Party Financing Pdf

Author : British Columbia. Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform
Publisher : Citizens' Assembly
Page : 284 pages
File Size : 53,6 Mb
Release : 2004
Category : Election law
ISBN : UIUC:30112073324359

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Making Every Vote Count by British Columbia. Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform Pdf

The first part of this technical report briefly reviews the current system of voting in British Columbia, then describes the single transferable voting process that has been recommended for adoption by the Citizen's Assembly on Electoral Reform. The second part describes the work of the Assembly its selection phase, learning phase, public hearings phase, and the final deliberation phase when the recommendations on electoral reform were made. It also summarizes an evaluation of the Assembly's work and the Assembly's activities in communications & public awareness. The final part contains supporting materials including a history of the Assembly, information on the approach used to select Assembly members, documents used in the selection phase, and a glossary.

Author : Daniel O. Prosterman
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 289 pages
File Size : 54,7 Mb
Release : 2013-02-14
Category : History
ISBN : 9780195377736

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Defining Democracy by Daniel O. Prosterman Pdf

Defining Democracy reveals the history of a little-known experiment in urban democracy begun in New York City during the Great Depression and abolished amid the early Cold War. For a decade, New Yorkers utilized a new voting system that produced the most diverse legislatures in the city's history and challenged the American two-party structure. Daniel O. Prosterman examines struggles over electoral reform in New York City to clarify our understanding of democracy's evolution in the United States and the world.

Author : Michael Dummett
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
Page : 216 pages
File Size : 50,8 Mb
Release : 1997
Category : Political Science
ISBN : UOM:39015041010441

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Principles of Electoral Reform by Michael Dummett Pdf

A country's electoral system has a profound effect on its politics; its citizens ought therefore to ask themselves at frequent intervals whether that currently in force is satisfactory. This book does not argue for a particular answer, but aims to help people think about the question. Few realize how much thought it needs. One should not begin by asking whether this or that system is better, but by trying to make precise what we want an electoral system to do. A general election has two effects: it decides the composition of Parliament; and it decides who is going to represent each constituency. The question of what we want an electoral system to do therefore splits in two: how should Parliament be divided between the parties, given the voter's preferences? and which are the most representative local candidates, given the voter's preferences? Neither question is straightforward, but this timely new book helps to explain on what basis we should decide which electoral system we should have.

Author : F. Leslie Seidle
Publisher : Dundurn
Page : 156 pages
File Size : 54,5 Mb
Release : 1991-01-01
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 1550020986

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Interest Groups and Elections in Canada by F. Leslie Seidle Pdf

The two studies in Interest Groups and Elections in Canada explore the nature and influence of special interest groups. They consider different aspects of the question, "In the context of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, how can the laws intended to secure a fair electoral process be reconciled with freedom of expression?" Janet Hiebert reviews the limits on interest groups adopted in 1974 and amended in 1983, profiles the groups involved int he 1988 federal election, and discusses relevant legislation and jurisprudence in the provinces and abroad. She concludes that spending limits for parties and candidates will only be effective if there are also restrictions on independent expenditures during elections by groups and individuals. Brian Tanguay and Barry Kay assess the influence attributed to locally oriented interest groups, including by members of Parliament, and conclude that these organizations have less influence on the political process than is the popular view. The authors conclude that dissatisfaction is a key variable explaining the role of these interest groups and their activities during elections.

Author : Frederic Charles Schaffer
Publisher : Cornell University Press
Page : 274 pages
File Size : 51,6 Mb
Release : 2008
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 0801441153

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The Hidden Costs of Clean Election Reform by Frederic Charles Schaffer Pdf

Schaffer reveals how tinkering with the electoral process, even with the best of intentions, can easily damage democratic ideals.

Author : André Blais
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Page : 238 pages
File Size : 48,9 Mb
Release : 2008-05-08
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780199539390

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To Keep Or To Change First Past The Post? by André Blais Pdf

This book offers a detailed examination of the politics of electoral reform in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and New Zealand, the debates that take place, the proposals that are advanced, and the strategies deployed by the actors.

Author : Michael Meadowcroft
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 32 pages
File Size : 44,7 Mb
Release : 1991
Category : Election law
ISBN : 0903291118

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The Politics of Electoral Reform by Michael Meadowcroft Pdf

Author : Andrew Reynolds,Ben Reilly,Andrew Ellis
Publisher : Stockholm : International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance
Page : 258 pages
File Size : 52,8 Mb
Release : 2005
Category : Political Science
ISBN : STANFORD:36105114582120

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Electoral System Design by Andrew Reynolds,Ben Reilly,Andrew Ellis Pdf

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Author : Shaun Bowler,Todd Donovan
Publisher : OUP Oxford
Page : 176 pages
File Size : 46,5 Mb
Release : 2013-03-28
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780191653155

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The Limits of Electoral Reform by Shaun Bowler,Todd Donovan Pdf

Institutions 'matter' to electoral reform advocates and political scientists - both argue that variation in electoral institutions affect how elected officials and citizens behave. Change the rules, and citizen engagement with politics can be renewed. Yet a look at the record of electoral reform reveals a string of disappointments. This book examines a variety of reforms, including campaign finance, direct democracy, legislative term limits, and changes to the electoral system itself. This study finds electoral reforms have limited, and in many cases, no effects. Despite reform advocates' claims, and contrary to the 'institutions matter' literature, findings here suggest there are hard limits to effects of electoral reform. The explanations for this are threefold. The first is political. Reformers exaggerate claims about transformative effects of new electoral rules, yet their goal may simply be to maximize their partisan advantage. The second is empirical. Cross-sectional comparative research demonstrates that variation in electoral institutions corresponds with different patterns of political attitudes and behaviour. But this method cannot assess what happens when rules are changed. Using examples from the US, UK, New Zealand, Australia, and elsewhere this book examines attitudes and behaviour across time where rules were changed. Results do not match expectations from the institutional literature. Third is a point of logic. There is an inflated sense of the effects of institutions generally, and of electoral institutions in particular. Given the larger social and economic forces at play, it is unrealistic to expect that changes in electoral arrangements will have substantial effects on political engagement or on how people view politics and politicians. Institutional reform is an almost constant part of the political agenda in democratic societies. Someone, somewhere, always has a proposal not just to change the workings of the system but to reform it. The book is about how and why such reforms disappoint. Comparative Politics is a series for students, teachers, and researchers of political science that deals with contemporary government and politics. Global in scope, books in the series are characterised by a stress on comparative analysis and strong methodological rigour. The series is published in association with the European Consortium for Political Research. For more information visit: www.ecprnet.eu. The Comparative Politics series is edited by Professor David M. Farrell, School of Politics and International Relations, University College Dublin, and Kenneth Carty, Professor of Political Science, University of British Columbia.

Author : Amy Catalinac
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 267 pages
File Size : 51,8 Mb
Release : 2016-01-25
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781107120495

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Electoral Reform and National Security in Japan by Amy Catalinac Pdf

This book argues that Japanese politicians pay more attention to security issues nowadays because of the electoral reform.

Author : Daniela Giannetti,Bernard Grofman
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
Page : 164 pages
File Size : 44,5 Mb
Release : 2011-02-01
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781441972286

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A Natural Experiment on Electoral Law Reform by Daniela Giannetti,Bernard Grofman Pdf

In the early 1990s, major electoral reforms took place in both Italy and Japan; each replaced a form of “proportional representation” (in which voters cast a ballot for a party list) with a “mixed member” system (in which voters cast ballots for individual candidates and party lists). The reforms were enacted by political elites in the context of divisions within the dominant party, changing patterns of party support, and party splits, in efforts to retain power while responding to charges of corruption, clientelism, and lack of accountability. The experiences of both countries provide a laboratory in which to investigate the effects and implications of the reforms, and, more broadly to analyze voter behavior in the context of institutional change. The introduction provides an overview of post-WWII politics and electoral reform in Italy and Japan. In each of the next four chapters, specialists in Italian and Japanese electoral politics are teamed up to review data both before and after the reforms. Within this comparative framework, the authors explore such topics as changes in party competition, candidate selection mechanisms, and intra-party politics. The concluding chapter considers the longer-term consequences—both anticipated and unanticipated—of the reforms; despite superficially similar conditions, the effects in the two countries were dramatically different: in Japan, the new system has taken hold, with minor modifications, while in Italy, there was a reversion to a proportional representation system. As the essays in this volume demonstrate, to understand why similar reforms had such different effects in the two countries we must examine how electoral systems are embedded in broader institutional and social arrangements, and at the complex interplay of political geography, political history, and the rational calculations of political actors.