General election 2019: The voting system explained - BBC News

Summary

The video explains how voting works in a UK general election, emphasizing that voters choose representatives for their local constituencies, not directly for a Prime Minister. Each of the 650 constituencies elects one Member of Parliament (MP) through a 'first-past-the-post' system, where the candidate with the most votes wins. The video discusses the implications of safe and marginal seats and highlights that a significant portion of votes often goes to losing candidates. It concludes by noting that the Prime Minister typically comes from the party with the most MPs in Parliament.

Takeaways

• 🗳️ You are not directly voting for a Prime Minister, but for a local representative in Parliament.
• 🏠 Each local area in the UK is called a constituency, with 650 constituencies overall.
• 👥 Each constituency typically has between 60,000 and 80,000 voters.
• 📊 Voters choose one candidate from a list, often affiliated with political parties, using a system called 'first-past-the-post.'
• 🏆 A candidate only needs to get more votes than any other candidate in their constituency to win.
• 🪑 The winner becomes a Member of Parliament (MP) and gets a seat in the House of Commons.
• 📉 Only about 430 of the 650 MPs can sit in the House of Commons at the same time.
• 🔍 Safe seats are those likely to be won by a specific party, while marginal seats are highly contested and may have closer results.
• 📉 At the last election, 14% of votes were cast for losing candidates, meaning many votes do not contribute to winning seats.
• 📈 The share of votes does not always reflect the number of seats a party has in Parliament.

Q & A

What is the main purpose of voting in a general election in the UK?

The main purpose of voting in a general election in the UK is to choose a representative for your local area, known as a constituency, in Parliament.

What does the term 'constituency' refer to?

A constituency refers to a specific local area in the UK, and there are 650 constituencies, each made up of roughly the same number of voters, typically between 60,000 and 80,000.

What is the 'first-past-the-post' voting system?

'First-past-the-post' is a voting system where the candidate with the most votes in a constituency wins the election. It is named after a horse-racing term.

What happens to votes cast for losing candidates?

Votes cast for losing candidates do not impact the election outcome; they essentially do not count. In the last election, 14% of the votes were for candidates who did not win.

What is a safe seat in an election?

A safe seat is a constituency where a candidate from a particular political party is very likely to win, usually due to having a large majority from previous elections.

What is a marginal seat?

A marginal seat is a constituency where the election result is likely to be much closer, making it a key target during election campaigns.

How are the number of seats in Parliament related to the share of votes received by each party?

The share of votes received by each party on Election Day does not necessarily correspond to the number of seats they end up with in Parliament, as seen in the 2015 general election.

Who typically becomes the Prime Minister after an election?

The leader of the party with the most MPs in Parliament usually becomes the Prime Minister after an election.

What is the role of an MP once elected?

Once elected, an MP (Member of Parliament) represents everyone in their constituency, not just those who voted for them, and participates in debating and voting on laws.

What is the significance of the benches in the House of Commons?

The benches in the House of Commons are significant because there is only space for about 430 out of the 650 MPs to sit down at the same time, highlighting the crowded nature of parliamentary proceedings.