How will the 2017 French presidential election work? After last year’s political whirlwind, attention has turned to 2017’s elections for evidence of further shocks. Voters are going to the polls in the Netherlands, in Germany but most attention is focused on France, whose... Posted 13 Jan 2017
How Trump won the Presidency despite not winning the most votes So that sure was an election. Whatever happened in the US presidential election it was always going to be a historic moment. On Tuesday I pointed out that Donald Trump could win the Presidency even if... Posted 09 Nov 2016
How Trump could win the Presidency even if he doesn’t win the most votes It’s election day in the United States, and that means all the pageantry and spectacle one comes to expect with democracy in the world’s most powerful nation. The spectacle of a US election also reminds... Posted 08 Nov 2016
How do Conservative Party leadership elections work? (Updated for October 2024) Historically there weren’t elections for the leader of the Conservative party, but, following the machinations surrounding the appointment of Sir Alec Douglas-Home in 1963, elections among the MPs were brought in,... Posted 05 Jul 2016
Why can’t we vote online? The following is a guest blog from Jason Kitcat, who is on the Advisory Council for digital campaigners, the Open Rights Group. At first blush it’s understandable why many would think that Internet voting is a good... Posted 04 Sep 2015
Proportional Representation can build a stronger constituency link It is often said that the constituency link is a vital part of British political life; MPs represent local areas and are directly accountable to those areas for their continued careers. If MPs misbehave their... Posted 27 Jul 2015
With Proportional Representation small parties get the influence they deserve For those used to one party getting a majority of the seats (without a majority of votes) the idea that a smaller parties often get to be in government under PR can be confusing. Of... Posted 23 Jun 2015
Did Proportional Representation put the Nazis in power? Probably the first time many of us heard of Proportional Representation (PR) was in a school classroom studying the Second World War. For some people this may have been the last time they heard about other voting... Posted 05 Jun 2015
So who gets to be Prime Minister? In 2011 the Fixed Term Parliaments Act was passed. Setting aside its merits or demerits, the politics behind its introduction and the decision to fix the terms at five years, it is a piece of... Posted 06 May 2015
Electoral Reform for Eurovision? Eurovision is upon us once again with everyone’s favourite celebration of Europe’s questionable musical talent. Certain traditions will no doubt hold: certain acts will be flamboyantly silly, Britain will score badly and after it is... Posted 24 May 2012