Support for electoral reform is strong at the Liberal Democrat’s 2023 conference Heading to the Liberal Democrats’ 2023 conference in Bournemouth to promote electoral reform is not the hardest task I’ve been handed in my working life! Saying that, our task was more to find out if they... Posted 28 Sep 2023
Voter ID rules criticised by MPs, election watchdog and election administrators This week three separate independent reports have exposed the extent of the unnecessary damage voter ID has wrought to our democracy. Voter ID was rushed through for the local elections in May which meant voters... Posted 15 Sep 2023
The Mid Bedfordshire by-election shows how First Past the Post warps our politics It finally happened. After weeks of speculation and, more latterly, mounting criticism, Nadine Dorries officially resigned her seat in Mid Bedfordshire, triggering yet another by-election. Since the former culture secretary announced her resignation back before... Posted 29 Aug 2023
Short, long, or in-between: How long do parliaments last? Regular elections are a core part of any democracy, but how regular should they be? There has been a lot of variety on what the right length is, both around the world and in the... Posted 25 Aug 2023
First Past the Post locks many talented people out of politics This week, Politics Home reported that Regional Tories Are Snubbing Parachuted MP Candidates In Favour Of “Local Champions”. It seems that number of Conservative candidates with a background in local government is increasing at each... Posted 11 Aug 2023
Where are the policies for renters? First Past the Post keeps the focus on homeowners With the current cost-of-living crisis and soaring interest rates, mortgages and mortgage holders are all anybody can talk about, including our political parties. Posted 28 Jul 2023
Should the ERS look at the rules for… Tennis? As tennis players line up for the Wimbledon semi-finals, and candidates hit the doorstep for multiple by-elections, we’ve been thinking about how useful sporting analogies are when it comes to politics. As, when you think... Posted 14 Jul 2023
Welsh Government to introduce progressive electoral reforms Last week in the Senedd, First Minister Mark Drakeford announced the Welsh Government’s plans for legislation for the next year. This covered eight new bills which the government hopes will become law. There was a... Posted 06 Jul 2023
Hundreds of activists gather to tell MPs to Sort the System Support for proportional representation is growing. In the past few months, we’ve seen more and more people saying it’s time for change – the result of widespread concern that Westminster politics isn’t working for ordinary... Posted 26 May 2023
Time for a key change? How we would reform Eurovision voting Eurovision is upon us once again – everyone’s favourite flamboyant celebration of Europe’s musical talent. With quite a few ERS staff members being unashamed superfans, we thought it would be a great excuse to take... Posted 12 May 2023