JR - Interesting post and thanks for responding to...

2009-06-13T11:44:52.705+01:00

JR - Interesting post and thanks for responding to mine.

My first comment is that with your support for AV you are still settling for your own personal second best. Yes, you would still be able to vote Tory and put Labour second and if enough people did that Mr Leech may be defeated but you would end up with a Labour MP representing you which is not really what you want.

I was at MMU (I studied in the John Dalton building in case you are interested!) but it is 13 years since I left Manchester so I will bow to your greater knowledge of the constituency situation there! My point was not really to get into an argument about whether I had merged the right seats or not, it was more to show how under STV it would be possible to get a Tory MP even in an area with a fairly low Tory vote. Even if you are correct about how the seats around you would be merged, there would be plenty of other multi-member seats around the country (and probably a few in Greater Manchester) that would end up with one or more Tory MPs where currently there are none. Of course there would be a reduction in Tory MPs in areas like the South where I live but there would then be some extra Lib Dem and Labour (and possibly Green and UKIP) MPs which again is fair given their support down here. That's how the approximate proportionality aggregates up across the country.

I totally disagree with your comment about STV being too complex. All the voter has to do is list 1, 2, 3, 4 etc. on their ballot paper and stop when they don't want any more preferences. It is a very simple system and is already used very successfully in countries like Ireland for example.

One final thing I would say is that you should not be apologetic for being interested in all of this to this level. Knowledge of the D'Hondt electoral system and all the others is a virtue in my view and will stand you in very good stead in the future both in your working life and also within the Conservatives should you wish to progress with them. It is good to see people like yourself properly engaging with the debate!

Comments on The World of JR: Electoral Reform: Voting Indecision

JR - Interesting post and thanks for responding to...