1. Majoritarian Systems
   1. FPTP
      1. Plurality system
      2. System currently used in Westminster
      3. Country split into 650 constituencies
      4. PROCESS
         1. 1. Constituents vote for a local MP
         2. 2. Simple majority candidate wins a seat
         3. 3. Party with at least half +1 seats wins the election
      5. ADVANTAGES
         1. Simple
            1. The system is easy to understand by voters, which may increase turnout
         2. Produces strong & stable governments
            1. Because coalitions are rare
         3. Prevents extremist parties getting seats
            1. Because it is the representative in the area that gets the seat, not the party overall
         4. Representation offered by local MP
            1. People may prefer being able to address local issues to their local MP
      6. DISADVANTAGES
         1. 2-Party System
            1. Typically only Labour and the Conservatives have any chance of winning a general election using FPTP
         2. Severe over and under representation
            1. Smaller parties with voters spread out across the country are severely under-represented
         3. Wasted votes & lower turnouts
            1. In a constituency where one party wins all the time, any vote for another party is essentially wasted. This leads to voter apathy.
         4. Tactical voting
            1. In an attempt to over-come the 2-party system, many people may vote for a party that they also don't like. This skews the general view of the population.
         5. Less legitimacy (winner may be overall least wanted)
            1. It is possible for the winner to receive less votes than the runner up.
   2. Alternative Vote
      1. Majoritarian system
      2. Referendum failed
      3. PROCESS
         1. 1. 1st preference votes are counted
         2. 2. If nobody gains an overall majority, the last place candidate is eliminated and their voter's second preference votes get added
         3. 3. Repeat until one party has over 50% of the seats
      4. ADVANTAGES
         1. The winner has the support of the majority
            1. More people will have preferred this candidate over the loser
         2. Link between MP and constituents is retained
         3. Much fairer representation of votes cast
      5. DISADVANTAGES
         1. The winner is the least unpopular, not the most popular
         2. Potential for more extremist parties to gain seats
   3. Supplementary Vote
      1. Majoritarian system
      2. Used to elect London mayors and other directly elected mayors
      3. PROCESS
         1. 1. 1st preference votes are counted
         2. 2. If no clear winner, 2nd preference votes are added and the overall winner from that wins
      4. ADVANTAGES
         1. Broad support must be gained from the winner
         2. Keeps extremist parties out
      5. DISADVANTAGES
         1. The winning candidate does not require an overall majority
         2. Would not be proportionate for general elections
2. Proportional Systems
   1. Regional List System
      1. Proportional System
      2. Used to elect UK MEP's for European Parliament
      3. PROCESS
         1. 1. Candidates are split into regions and are ranked in a list by the party leader, though the public do not know the order.
         2. 2. Voters vote for the political party
         3. 3. E.g. if UKIP wins 5 seats, they pick the top 5 candidates from their list
      4. ADVANTAGES
         1. Stronger connection between votes cast and seats gained
         2. Fairer to smaller parties e.g. UKIP
         3. Minorities can be represented
      5. DISADVANTAGES
         1. Gives power to the party HQ (decides who is where in the list)
         2. No choice of actual candidate
         3. Leads to coalitions
         4. Would have a weak link between MP and constituency
   2. Additional Member System
      1. Proprtional System
      2. Used in Wales and the London Devolved Assembly
      3. PROCESS
         1. 1. Local MP is voted for first in an open list using preferential system
         2. 2. Then a regional MP is also elected using a closed-list single-preference system
      4. ADVANTAGES
         1. Fairer to small parties
         2. Fairly proportionate
         3. Minorities are better represented
      5. DISADVANTAGES
         1. Doubts about the job that the 'additional member' does
         2. Not as proportional as other systems
         3. Creates coalitions
   3. Single Transferrable Vote
      1. Proportional System
      2. Used to elect Irish MEPs and Scottish Local Elections
      3. PROCESS
      4. ADVANTAGES
         1. Strong connection between votes and seats
         2. Fairer to smaller parties
         3. People can chose their MP
         4. More minorities are represented
      5. DISADVANTAGES
         1. Very complex
         2. Creates coalitions
         3. No close link between the MP and the coalition government
3. Manifesto & Mandate
   1. Manifesto
      1. A document that a political party creates before an election that sets out its policies. If elected, it is expected to carry out the manifesto.
   2. Mandate
      1. A 'right' to carry out the policies written in the party's manifesto.
      2. A fairer voting system creates a more legitimate and stronger mandate
4. Reform
5. General Defintions
   1. Election
      1. An election is the process in which the people vote on who the leader should be. In terms of the UK general election, the entire electorate (Non-prisoners over the age of 18) can vote for their local representative within their local area who belongs to a political party. The winner of the election is the party who has the most representatives in the House of Commons
      2. Functions
         1. Allows people to choose Parliament
         2. Encourages political participation
         3. Allows people to pass sovereignty to Parliament
         4. Allows minority views to be heard
         5. Allows us to influence policy
         6. Allows us to hold government to account
         7. Allows us to remove governments that are failing
         8. Simply to represent the views of the electorate
         9. Provide a mandate (right to rule)
   2. Referendum
      1. Comparison ELECTION // REFERENDUM
         1. Form government // Make policy decisions
         2. Vote for candidate party // Select a yes/no option
         3. General issues // Specific issue
         4. Regular (legally required) // Ad hoc (decided by government)
         5. Representative democracy // Direct democracy
   3. Key Terms
      1. 2-Party System
         1. Where there are just 2 parties that can (realistically) win a general election
         2. ADVANTAGES
            1. Keeps out extremist parties
         3. DISADVANTAGES
            1. Both parties are center - esentially the same thing
            2. Voters may be left feeling they have to vote for the 'lesser of two evils'
      2. 3-Party System
         1. Where there are just 3 parties that can (realistically) win a general election
      3. Floating Voter
         1. A voter that does not have any allegiance to a party. They tend to freely change their mind before elections. Election campaigns target these voters
         2. ADVANTAGES
            1. There is a flexibility in who wins general elections
         3. DISADVANTAGES
            1. Therefore there are small number of people that control the outcome of an election
      4. Safe Seats
         1. A seat (constituency) that always votes for the same party every time
         2. ADVANTAGES
         3. DISADVANTAGES
            1. Anyone living in the constituency with a different opinion cannot get it heard
            2. Less effort or attention put to improving safe seats