Articles and Insights

Accessible commentary and insights from the Electoral Reform Society, on the issues shaping our democracy.

Featured Articles Latest Insights Polling & Public Opinion The Basics of First Past the Post Speaking up for Voters How our Country Works Global Perspectives

Featured Articles

The main stories selected by the Electoral Reform Society's team.

Local democracy

New law restores fairer voting system for mayoral elections

April 30, 2026

On 29 April 2026, the English Devolution & Community Empowerment Bill received Royal Assent. This means that it has passed all stages of its parliamentary progress, through the House of Commons and House of Lords and has become law, as the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act.

Read article →
Voters rights restored! Back up choices for mayors to return
House of Lords

Hereditary peers have left the Lords for the last time

April 30, 2026

Sometimes change arrives with fanfare. Sometimes it arrives quietly, after years of argument, delay and unfinished business.

Read article →
Money in Politics

Government to cap overseas donations and stop crypto donations

March 25, 2026

Today we welcomed the review by Philip Rycroft into countering foreign financial influence and interference in UK politics. The review rightly identifies a loss of trust in our democratic system and processes, and the importance of securing our democracy from those who seek to undermine it.

Read article →
Electoral Reform in Westminster

We were asked to address MPs on the Representation of the People Bill committee

March 19, 2026

This week MPs sitting on the Representation of the People Bill committee took evidence before the bill starts committee stage – the line-by-line examination of the legislation. Expert witnesses are called to give evidence at this stage to assist the committee with examining and improving the bill as it goes through parliament.

Read article →

Latest Insights

The latest articles and insights from the Electoral Reform Society's team.

Better local services need better local elections
Local democracy

Why we need to change the way we elect our councillors in England and Wales

April 28, 2026

Discussions around changing the voting system often refer to Westminster, yet the same problems that stifle the government of the...

Local democracy

England’s previous local elections show what’s wrong with our voting system

April 27, 2026

Time and time again, England’s local elections repeatedly produce results that simply don’t reflect how people vote. If you live...

Holyrood’s voting system wants you to be represented in Parliament
ERS Scotland

How Scotland’s Holyrood elections work will work this May

April 23, 2026

The 2024 General Election in Scotland was a one-sided affair. Scottish Labour won 35.3% of the vote in Scotland and...

Compulsory voting would treat the symptoms not the cause
Polling Day

We should fix our voting system, not force people to use it

April 23, 2026

This week, the Telegraph has published an article debating the merits of compulsory voting. Partly inspired by the approaching first...

Read all articles →

Polling & Public Opinion

Analysis of the latest polling from the Electoral Reform Society's research department.

View all polling analysis →

The Basics of First Past the Post

Discover how we are let down by the way we elect MPs to Westminster.

The majority of people are represented by an MP they didnt want
Electoral Reform in Westminster

Why First Past the Post leaves most of us without voice in parliament

January 15, 2026

We live in a country where each constituency has a single MP. Yet for most people this means the MP...

Why reach out when you can win a majority on just 30 percent of the vote
Electoral Reform in Westminster

How First Past the Post turns politics into tribal warfare

December 10, 2025

Poll after poll and headline after headline in the U.K may leave you with the impression of a country more...

First Past the Post doesn’t care how narrow or extreme a party’s agendas is
Electoral Reform in Westminster

How First Past the Post lets people with fringe views slip through the net

November 13, 2025

Britain’s First Past the Post system was designed for a two-party age. One that pretty much everyone agrees we no...

The real fights aren’t across the floor of the Commons but inside the ruling party itself
Electoral Reform in Westminster

Why single-party governments under First Past the Post fail to get things done

October 29, 2025

For all the talk of “strong government,” the reality of single-party rule under First Past the Post (FPTP) often looks...

Read more on First Past the Post's failings →

Speaking up for Voters

Read the latest articles from the Electoral Reform Society's spokespeople

Darren Hughes

Chief Executive

Jessica Garland

Director of Policy and Research

Jessica Blair

ERS Cymru Director

Willie Sullivan

Senior Director, Campaigns and Scotland

How Our Country Works

Discover how power functions in the UK.

Better local services need better local elections
Local democracy

Why we need to change the way we elect our councillors in England and Wales

April 28, 2026

Discussions around changing the voting system often refer to Westminster, yet the same problems that stifle the government of the...

Holyrood’s voting system wants you to be represented in Parliament
ERS Scotland

How Scotland’s Holyrood elections work will work this May

April 23, 2026

The 2024 General Election in Scotland was a one-sided affair. Scottish Labour won 35.3% of the vote in Scotland and...

Wales has 16 new constituencies, each one electing six Members of the Senedd
ERS Cymru

There is a new way of voting at the Senedd election this May. How does it work?

April 2, 2026

Whatever happens in May, the next Senedd election is set to be historic. For instance, recent polling has pointed to...

We need to shift the balance closer to 50:50, to allow the ‘top-up’ to do its job.
ERS Scotland

Scotland’s Parliament still has too much First Past the Post

March 25, 2026

When the Scottish Parliament was created, it was built to be different to Westminster. A system designed to reflect how...

Read more on how our country works →

Global Perspectives

Discover how countries around the world run their elections.

All 🌍 Australia 🇦🇺 Austria 🇦🇹 Belgium 🇧🇪 Brazil 🇧🇷 Canada 🇨🇦 Denmark 🇩🇰 Estonia 🇪🇪 Fiji 🇫🇯 Finland 🇫🇮 France 🇫🇷 Germany 🇩🇪 Greece 🇬🇷 Guernsey 🇬🇬 Hungary 🇭🇺 India 🇮🇳 Ireland 🇮🇪 Italy 🇮🇹 Jamaica 🇯🇲 Japan 🇯🇵 Jersey 🇯🇪 Latvia 🇱🇻 Lebanon 🇱🇧 Malta 🇲🇹 Netherlands 🇳🇱 New Zealand 🇳🇿 North Korea 🇰🇵 Norway 🇳🇴 Poland 🇵🇱 Portugal 🇵🇹 Romania 🇷🇴 Slovenia 🇸🇮 South Africa 🇿🇦 Sweden 🇸🇪 Switzerland 🇨🇭 Turkey 🇹🇷 United States of America 🇺🇸
There is no denying that Germany’s system has done a better job of reflecting the wishes of voters than the FPTP system
Electoral Reform in Westminster

Exploring the proportional outcome of Germany’s 2025 Federal election

February 24, 2025

With around 84.5 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous country in western Europe. A German Federal election, where representatives...

Elections in the German states are hugely important
Electoral Reform in Westminster

How do elections work in the German States?

May 9, 2022

Fresh off the heels of voters in Germany’s northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein, this Sunday 15th May it is North-Rhine Westphalia’s...

other countries have powerful regional representatives, Britain remains the odd-one-out
House of Lords

How are the members of upper houses chosen around the world?

January 27, 2022

Many countries use a bicameral political system – meaning that they have two chambers in their parliament. These parliaments are...

There are many ways party leaders and prime ministers are chosen across Europe
Electoral Reform in Westminster

How are Prime Ministers chosen around the world?

January 19, 2022

With pressure mounting on Boris Johnson, it’s looking increasingly possible that Britain could well soon have a new Prime Minister....

2022 is a big year for presidential elections in Europe
Electoral Reform in Westminster

How are Presidents elected around Europe?

January 5, 2022

2022 is a big year for presidential elections in Europe – with the Italian, German and French presidencies all open...

This election marks the fifth change in Germany’s head of government in the last 50 years
Electoral Reform in Westminster

Germany’s 2021 election: How Germans vote

September 23, 2021

This Sunday (26th March), Germany goes to the polls to elect its national parliament – the Bundestag. With Angela Merkel...

Polling Station
Electoral Reform in Westminster

Barriers to entry: How do electoral thresholds work?

September 3, 2021

A common feature of many Party List PR systems is an electoral threshold – a pre-set bar that parties have...

Which countries in Europe use PR_
Electoral Reform in Westminster

Which European countries use proportional representation?

December 26, 2018

Of the 43 countries most often considered to be within Europe, 40 use some form of proportional representation to elect...

Proportionality and fairness makes this an improvement on Westminster
Electoral Reform in Westminster

How does proportional representation work in Germany?

December 18, 2018

[Note: Germany updated their voting system for the 2025 election, and introduced new rules. You can find out about that...

Read More on the Global Perspective →