The Conservatives just pledged to take our democracy back decadesYesterday Theresa May launched the Conservatives’ manifesto. There was a lot of talk about ‘moving forwards’. But one pledge stuck out as doing the exact opposite. Theresa May has pledged to impose (or in the manifesto’s...Posted 19 May 2017
Electoral reform returns to the agenda in British ColumbiaBritish Columbia, Canada’s most Western province, has often been the site of electoral reform intrigue. In the run-up to the 1952 provincial election the Conservative and Liberal parties tried to stop the socialist Co-operative Commonwealth...Posted 18 May 2017
The drop in attainers on the electoral roll should worry us allWith a week to go before the cut off for registering to vote for the general election on June 8th, our research has shown that the proportion of school leavers on the electoral roll dropped...Posted 17 May 2017
‘Progressive alliances’ shouldn’t be necessary: they’re product of a broken voting systemThere’s a lot of talk about June 8th being the ‘tactical voting’ election. This past couple of weeks we’ve seen the latest symptom: parties doing the tactical voting on behalf of the electorate – weeks before...Posted 08 May 2017
The next government must extend votes at 16 beyond ScotlandYou might not have realised, but on Thursday, thousands of 16 and 17 year olds trekked to polling stations across the country to exercise their democratic right to vote. They went with the full support...Posted 05 May 2017
Where are the women in May’s local election?Since the Prime Minister’s unexpected announcement of a General Election last week there’s been little time to talk of anything else. Our 24 hour news cycle is now dominated by images of May, Corbyn et...Posted 27 Apr 2017
Democracy, Diversity and English DevolutionThe excitement of the general election aside, it’s important to remember that there are other important elections coming up – ones that have gone largely under the national radar. As well as important local elections...Posted 19 Apr 2017
Deadline Day: Our Voter Registration System Needs An OverhaulOn the evening of the 7th June last year – just a couple of weeks before the EU referendum – the website to register to vote crashed. Cue havoc, thousands of disappointed and angry people, and...Posted 13 Apr 2017
A month before polling day, nearly 100 candidates in Wales have already wonVoting is an essential part of democratic life – from Mayoral contests to Westminster elections. Yet in an alarming number of places next month, voters in Wales will be denied a vote. That’s not because...Posted 11 Apr 2017
Fighting for fair votes around the world – lessons from the Global Greens CongressProportional representation has been a longstanding campaign of the Greens. But not just here in the UK – democratic reform is often a key plank of Green platforms. So it was fascinating to see leaders...Posted 07 Apr 2017