We gave evidence to MSs on a new Bill to reform the Senedd – here’s what we said In September a new piece of legislation was introduced into the Senedd, which looks set to change how the Welsh Parliament looks and works. The Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill, if passed, will see... Posted 10 Nov 2023
Why independent candidates win with the Single Transferable Vote Currently, there are 14 independent MPs in the House of Commons, which might seem to suggest Independent candidates can win under First-Past-The-Post (FPTP). But these MPs are only independent because they were suspended from their... Posted 01 Nov 2023
Welcome new bill will make it easier to vote in Wales When it comes to democracy and elections in Wales, Bills are coming like buses! Just two weeks after the introduction of the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill the Welsh Government laid it’s Elections and... Posted 05 Oct 2023
Welsh Government introduce Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill Next year the Senedd will mark a quarter of a century since its establishment. For many of those 25 years it has been apparent that the Senedd is too small. At just 60 members the... Posted 18 Sep 2023
Welsh Government to introduce progressive electoral reforms Last week in the Senedd, First Minister Mark Drakeford announced the Welsh Government’s plans for legislation for the next year. This covered eight new bills which the government hopes will become law. There was a... Posted 06 Jul 2023
What elections should the next government reform? Last week we published a blog on UK electoral reforms since 1997 and highlighted that whilst at Westminster the fight for electoral reform continues, the progress of reform across the UK increased and voters are... Posted 08 Mar 2023
What Electoral reforms have there been since 1997? While the need for reforming Westminster’s First Past the Post (FPTP) voting system is getting clearer every day, outside Westminster the process of reform has been slowly, but surely, going in the right direction. While... Posted 02 Mar 2023
Welcome to Your Vote Week – Raising young people’s political awareness This week is Welcome to Your Vote Week, a campaign by the Electoral Commission to spark campaigners across the UK to speak to students in schools and raise young people’s political awareness. Amidst a global... Posted 02 Feb 2023
We told the Welsh Government our suggestions for how to remove barriers to voting Since elections were devolved to Wales in the Wales Act 2017 there have been a lot of changes for Welsh democracy. We’ve seen the extension of the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds and... Posted 31 Jan 2023
The 2022 Welsh Local Elections and the case for STV On May 5th 2022 voters went to the polls in Wales to elect councillors for all 22 local authorities. These were not the only elections held that day; Northern Ireland held an Assembly election and... Posted 15 Nov 2022