The Electoral System in the House of Commons
The First Past the Post (FPTP)
The member of the House of Lord is elected by “First Past the Post (FPTP)” system. It is a “winner takes all” majority voting system. Under this system, the UK is divided into 650 constituencies. Each has an average of 80,000 voters. one voter can only vote for one candidate. The winner of the election in each constituency is the person with the most votes. Therefore, there are total 650 members of the House of Lord. |
The role of political party in election
MPs are usually members of a political party. It is unusual that independent candidates can be elected in the UK. They are unlikely to gain seat without the party to support their campaign.
Although MPs win a seat through gaining the highest number of votes in the constituency in which they stand, they are expected to be loyalty to their political party. They are often faced dilemma with difficult choices between party and voters.
More about the history, function and electoral system:
Reference:
British Broadcasting Corporation(BBC). (2016). Decision making in the United Kingdom. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zp6mmp3/revision/1
British Broadcasting Corporation(BBC). (2016). Decision making in the United Kingdom. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zp6mmp3/revision/1