24 years ago the Greater London Authority Act gained royal assent This weekend (11th November) marks the 24th anniversary of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 gaining royal assent. The Greater London Authority, comprising the Mayor of London and the London Assembly, was first elected in... Posted 10 Nov 2023
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 weeks ago, the SNP uses the Alternative Vote to elect their leader – and they’re... Posted 24 Mar 2023
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 for electoral reform continues, the progress of reform across the UK increased and voters are... Posted 08 Mar 2023
A wave of cities across the United States switch to fair voting systems This week’s big electoral story is America’s midterm elections and the failure of the predicted ‘Red Wave’ to materialise. However, an underreported story has been the high number of cities that accepted proposals to introduce... Posted 11 Nov 2022
How do elections work in Australia? British voters may have to wait up to five years for a general election, but, for Australians, the opportunity comes no later than every three. On Saturday 21st May, Australia’s House of Representatives and roughly... Posted 15 May 2022
How are Presidents elected around Europe? 2022 is a big year for presidential elections in Europe – with the Italian, German and French presidencies all open over the next few months. Posted 05 Jan 2022
Was there a referendum on proportional representation? We have long argued for the need to replace the failing First Past the Post (FPTP) Westminster system with a fairer proportional system. There is a common misconception (or a more cynical misrepresentation) that the... Posted 28 Oct 2021
As New Yorkers vote in their first preferential primary, in the UK it is under threat Voters in New York City were able to participate in their first preferential voting (called Ranked Choice Voting or RCV in America) primaries this week, making it the largest-ever American electorate for a preferential voting... Posted 25 Jun 2021
Bills are being proposed across the US to scrap First Past the Post Electoral reform is gaining momentum across the USA as an impressive number of state legislatures are considering reforming their local and statewide elections. So far, 30 bills to scrap First Past the Post and bring... Posted 05 Feb 2021
A small change has the potential to make a big difference to Australian elections In 1918, a seemingly ordinary by-election in the Australian electoral division of Swan changed Australian federal politics forever. The conservatives left Labor in the dust with almost double the vote. Unfortunately for them, there were... Posted 08 Jan 2021