How many countries around the world use proportional representation?This article was updated in November 2025. Proportional representation is the most popular form of democracy for countries in the world today. Proportional Representation isn’t one electoral system though, it’s the simple idea that the...Posted 20 Mar 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
How did Denmark get proportional representation?Denmark today is home to one of the most proportional voting systems in the world, but, for a long time, elections to the Danish Folketing took place using First Past the Post. So why and...Posted 01 Mar 2023
Are there whips in the House of Lords?From 1990s TV series House of Cards to James Graham’s play This House, the role of the Whip in British politics has long been a source of fascination. While much is said of Whips in...Posted 17 Feb 2023
Why did Belgium adopt proportional representation?In 1899, Belgium became the first country in the world to adopt a proportional system for national elections. At that point, it had primarily been the preserve of theoretical debate, with only a handful of...Posted 01 Feb 2023
What are the alternatives to First Past the Post?Westminster’s First Past the Post system means we don’t get a parliament that fully represents the voting public. Millions of people can support one party and get a single MP, while a few hundred thousand...Posted 19 Jan 2023
How did Switzerland get proportional representation?In the early 1890s, a handful of Swiss cantons (states) held the first public elections in Europe to truly use proportional representation (PR). The success of these early votes meant that over the next few...Posted 06 Jan 2023
The 9 best politics Twitter accounts to follow for fans of electionsBecoming more informed in politics can be daunting. There’s so much information to consume and it comes at you so fast that it’s easy to become intimidated and give up. Here are some of the...Posted 09 Dec 2022
Voter ID that you can use in UK elections – and how to get itAll voters now need to bring a form of photographic identification to vote. The government has now confirmed in secondary legislation which photo IDs will be accepted, in a list which leaves few options for...Posted 22 Nov 2022