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Electoral Reform in Westminster

Time for a key change? How we would reform Eurovision voting

Eurovision is upon us once again – everyone’s favourite flamboyant celebration of Europe’s musical talent. With quite a few ERS...

Thousands of voters are left underrepresented or not represented at all

English Local Democracy

How can one party win all the seats in a local council election without all the votes?

In May’s 2023 local elections in England, the Liberal Democrats won 72% of the seats on Bath & North East...

Electoral Reform in Westminster

Why did the Netherlands adopt nationwide proportional representation?

The Dutch prioritised proportionality above all else when creating their system of proportional representation; choosing a single nationwide constituency and...

Electoral Reform in Westminster

What was AV+ the electoral system recommended by the Jenkins Report?

In their 1997 election manifesto, Labour set out a commitment to hold a referendum on the current First Past the...

Every major party uses something like the Alternative Vote to elect their leader

Electoral Reform in Westminster

Why do so many parties use transferable voting for their leadership elections?

The 27th of March sees the announcement of the results of the SNP leadership election. As we wrote a few...

Central party leaders have little influence over who is elected

Electoral Reform in Westminster

How do Finland’s elections work?

On Sunday 2nd April, voters in Finland will go to the polls to elect a new parliament. Finland’s parliament, known...

Proportional representation is the most popular form of democracy in the world today

Electoral Reform in Westminster

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...

The biggest reform would be changing the voting system at Westminster

Electoral Reform in Westminster

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...

Devolution

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...

Electoral Reform in Westminster

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,...

House of Lords

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...

Electoral Reform in Westminster

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...