16,000 people were blocked from voting in the general election, it’s time to scrap voter ID The scale of the impact that voter ID had on the recent general election has been laid bare today by a report from the Electoral Commission, which makes for concerning reading for those who care... Posted 10 Sep 2024
The plans to remove all the hereditary peers are now in motion Today’s the day we’ve been waiting for, plans have been laid for the final 92 hereditary peers to lose their places in the Lords! For over 700 years the House of Lords has contained Peers... Posted 05 Sep 2024
How does proportional representation work? Proportional representation (PR) is not a voting system in itself. Instead, it’s the idea that seats in parliament should reflect the proportion of votes cast; something which can be achieved through a variety of electoral... Posted 05 Sep 2024
Does the House of Lords have any power? This July, the King’s Speech outlined the government’s intention to remove hereditary seats from the House of Lords. This is a positive step toward reforming parliament’s second chamber, as it signals the beginning of the... Posted 28 Aug 2024
The real winner from votes at 16 is democracy With the new Labour government’s commitment to extending the franchise to 16- and 17-year-olds in their manifesto, many an argument has been levelled against the plan. Most arguments against measures that would improve our democracy... Posted 27 Aug 2024
What Kamala Harris’ nomination means for the American party system Rob Richie is the co-founder and senior advisor to FairVote, a sister organisation to the Electoral Reform Society. FairVote is a nonpartisan organisation in America, campaigning for better elections for all, working to make ‘Ranked... Posted 22 Aug 2024
How big donors fund our political parties Nearly a month back, at a time when candidates were still fighting for their seats, we reported on donations made to political parties during the first 3 weeks of campaigning for the 2024 general election.... Posted 13 Aug 2024
Powys: Have your say on fairer elections Powys County Council have just taken the next step of their journey towards fairer elections by launching a consultation on changing the voting system at local elections. The consultation comes following the passing of a... Posted 12 Aug 2024
STV is used within the House of Commons, so why can’t we use it for Westminster? On the 4th July an estimated 29 million people voted in the General Election, for the vast majority of us that was the end of our voting in 2024. However, for our newly elected representatives they... Posted 25 Jul 2024
King’s Speech signals first moves on Lords and electoral reform The first King’s Speech of any new government is a significant political moment. Amid the ostentation and pomp of the ceremony, the government lays out in detail the plans for its legislation in the new... Posted 24 Jul 2024