2022 Elections Bill: Has the government jumped the gun?Proposals to reform our election laws are like buses. You wait around ages for one and then two turn up at once. Earlier this week the government published its long-awaited Elections Bill – legislation they...Posted 09 Jul 2021
Political football: Italy’s party problems go beyond its voting systemIn this guest post, Dylan Difford takes a look at Italy’s political system ahead of Sunday’s showdown. While PR-elected governments are the norm in the democratic world – and often more stable than First Past...Posted 09 Jul 2021
PM and ministers challenged over plans to disenfranchise voters on an ‘industrial scale’The Elections Bill ‘is a solution in desperate search of a problem that simply does not exist’, one MP told the Prime Minister.Posted 09 Jul 2021
On the anniversary of the equal franchise, new government plans will undermine the right to voteThe 2nd July is the anniversary of the 1928 Equal Franchise Act. The act granted equal voting rights to women and men. As a result, for the first time, anyone over the age of 21...Posted 02 Jul 2021
Is Westminster gearing up for a devolution battle over ‘voter suppression’ plans?The Welsh Government has spoken out in strong terms against plans in Westminster to impose mandatory voter ID for UK elections. In a Senedd question to Wales’ Counsel General – the government’s top legal figure...Posted 02 Jul 2021
After a council voted to oppose mandatory voter ID, more could follow suitA council in Scotland will write to the Prime Minister to formally oppose plans to bring in voter ID at future general elections.Posted 25 Jun 2021
As New Yorkers vote in their first preferential primary, in the UK it is under threatVoters in New York City were able to participate in their first preferential voting (called Ranked Choice Voting or RCV in America) primaries this week, making it the largest-ever American electorate for a preferential voting...Posted 25 Jun 2021
The Two-Bloc System: Scandinavia’s Best Kept Secret?We thought we’d look at a unique aspect of Sweden, Norway and Denmark’s political cultures – the two-bloc system – and ask whether it really is able to combine the direct accountability of a two-party...Posted 23 Jun 2021
Could the courts shine a light on the revolving door to the House of Lords?We’ve long called for an end to the political nepotism that distorts appointments to the House of Lords. But now, the government is being challenged in the courts over what campaigners areWe’ve long called for...Posted 18 Jun 2021
Government confirms plans for ‘2022 Elections Bill’ – including making it harder to voteAmong an eclectic mix of changes, the bill will contain provisions to impose mandatory voter ID for Westminster elections and all elections in England.Posted 18 Jun 2021