Single transferable vote (STV).

A preferential system used in multi-

member districts. To
win election candidates must exceed a specified minimum quota of first-
preference votes.
Voters’ preferences are reallocated to other continuing candidates when
an unsuccessful candidate is excluded or if an elected candidate has a
surplus. The overall effect of this system is proportionality in the elected
assembly while elected officials have a link to a specific constituency.

Proportional representation systems. Their major advantage is that

they produce a better representation of the whole spectrum of voters’
preferences. PR systems encourage the participation of minorities and
under-represented groups in political life by giving them a better chance
of transforming their votes into seats at elections. However, this building
block of democracy can turn into a stumbling block when the variety of
views and opinions in the government that emerges hinders consensus
over a particular issue. In general, coalition governments are less effective
in developing a common policy and can be less stable than majoritarian
governments.

It’s more proportional because if your first choice is elected, then their
surplus votes are transferred to your second choice and so on until all
candidates are either elected or eliminated.

It gives the voter more power and sway in who is elected.

There are less wasted votes as you have more than one choice so one of
your choices is more likely to be elected.

Minority parties are more likely to be elected in meaning a wider

representation of views and ideas.

There might not be a majority government which means a lot of

conflicting ideas can happen and good policies of bigger parties won’t get
put through. Coalition governments are less effective in developing a
common policy.

It’s confusing to understand; most voters will understand the way they
vote but not how it is calculated.
The Single Transferable Vote (STV)

STV is a preferential voting system (as AV) in multi-member constituencies.

Voters rank the candidates according to their preference, and each constituency
elects between three and five MPs, depending on its size. Those candidates
reaching a certain quota of votes are elected. Surplus votes for the elected
candidates and the votes for the least supported candidate are redistributed on
the basis of voters' second choices. This process continues until the required
number of MPs reach the necessary quota and are returned to parliament.

Strengths:
• STV is one of the most proportional systems, producing a result which closely
reflects the distribution of votes.
• In Britain, a government would almost certainly have to be a coalition of
parties, which could end destructive adversarialism (opposition for opposition's
sake) and produce consensual and moderate government, better reflecting the
wishes of the people.
• It retains a constituency link and, compared to other voting systems, ensures
that many more voters are likely to have a meaningful vote which helps select
an MP from their constituency who represents their views.

Weaknesses:
• Opponents of STV argue that the coalition governments it is likely to produce in
Britain would be weak, divided and indecisive.
• Coalition governments tend to be created by political deals in "smoke-filled
rooms" which the voters have no control over.
• The government which emerges bears no relation to the individual parties
most voters support.
• STV is also a complex system which could confuse voters and take several
days to calculate.
• The large, multi-member constituencies erode the clear and direct link
between voters and their MP in single-member constituencies.

Where used: The Australian Senate, the Republic of Ireland, Tasmania, Malta
and for elections to the European Parliament.
Additional Member System (AMS)

Like AV+, AMS is a mixed system, combining simple constituency elections and a
directly elected proportional component. Voters cast two votes - one for a
constituency MP and one party vote.

Strengths:
• It retains the advantages of a simple single-member constituency system and
helps balance the disproportionate results this can produce.
• By providing for a party vote it best reflects the reality of modern voting: that
electorates back parties rather than individual candidates.
• A "threshold" qualification on the party vote ensures that extremists, who win
less than 5% of the vote for instance, are still excluded from parliament.

Weaknesses:
• Half the MPs are, in effect, picked by their party leadership and remain
unaccountable to any individual voters. The undemocratic power of party
patronage is massively increased and two very different types of MPs are
returned to parliament.
• The two votes are separate, so the second, purely proportional vote only
mitigates, rather than corrects, the imbalances of the simple constituency
election.
• In Germany, it has created strong, stable administrations, but these have never
been single party governments.
• As with other coalition-forming PR systems, it tends to give a small, centrist
party massive deal-making power, because larger parties need their support to
form a majority government.

Where used: Germany.