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electoral systems - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Challenges for small parties – Due to the nature of First Past The Post, smaller parties like the Greens, UKIP, and the Liberal Democrats struggle to gain seats, as many voters avoid supporting them, fearing their vote will be wasted.
      - Historical discrimination against smaller parties – In 1983, Labour MPs formed the Social Democratic Party and allied with the Liberals, winning 25% of the vote but securing only 3.5% of the seats.
      - UKIP’s struggle in 2015 – Despite gaining 3.8 million votes, UKIP won just one seat, while the Conservatives secured 331 seats with 11.3 million votes, making 2015 one of the most disproportional election results in UK history.
      - Increasing disproportionality – The 2024 election arguably surpassed 2015 in disproportionality, with Reform winning 4.1 million votes yet securing only 5 seats, compared to the Liberal Democrats' 3.5 million votes and 72 seats.
      - Voter behavior – Many voters hesitate to support smaller parties, fearing their preferred candidate won’t win in their constituency, reinforcing the dominance of larger parties.
  - - - Evidence: co-alition & ukip still had influence with 3.8 million votes and forced cameron into calling the EU referendum