Advantages and disadvantages of the First Past the Post voting system
(Finnbarr Webster / Alamy Stock Photo)
Any electoral system, including the FPTP electoral system, has advantages and disadvantages.
What are the advantages of FPTP?
- Close MP-constituency relationship: One person is elected for each constituency and this usually means there will be a strong constituency-MP relationship. It also means that if voters do not like their MP they can also vote to get rid of an individual person.
- One party strong government: Usually one party wins the election which means the winning party gets five years to put its plans (given in its manifesto) into action.
- Simplicity: The FPTP system is easily understood and familiar. Voters were given the chance a few years ago to get rid of FPTP for UK parliament elections but they choose to keep it.
What are the disadvantages of FPTP?
- Minority of the vote: In most constituencies more people (in total) vote against the winning candidate than for them. Sometimes an MP can be elected on a vote as low as only 35% of the vote.
- Smaller parties do not gain fair representation: In 2015, UKIP polled 12.6% of the vote but returned only one MP. In 2019, Labour received 18% of the vote in Scotland, but only returned one MP. However the Liberal Democrats received 9.5% of the vote and returned four MPs.
- Tactical voting: FPTP encourages tactical voting or people not bothering to vote as they think their vote will have little chance of helping elect their candidate.