“Supporting the Ravings of Fools” and other highlights of the British election
The vote between the sermon and the pay, candidates-foreigners, funny party — elections in Britain, which will be held on Thursday, June 8, I have a lot of interesting features.
The vote between the sermon and the pay, candidates-foreigners, funny party — elections in Britain have a lot of interesting features.
Thursday, 8 June, Britain will hold early parliamentary elections.
In most democratic countries, elections are held at the weekend in Britain, all the major voting since 1935, is held on Thursdays.
Why? As this tradition developed gradually and until recently, were not legislated, the original motives no one knows for sure, but the most common version is approximately as follows: when after the First world war elections were done in one day, the politicians wanted this day to defend as far as possible from Sunday’s sermon, but did not get on Friday, when workers got paid and drank it in the pub.
Thus, the choice does not remain — only Thursday.
A more detailed version of this hypothesis States that concerns were tied specifically to the preachers of the Free Church of England, which in the mass were supporters of the Liberal party (known from the history books “Whig” ceased to exist in the first half of the twentieth century), and agitators from among the conservatives in pubs.
In the XIX and early XX century election of members of the house of Commons each time lasted a few days or weeks
The electoral Commission of Britain a few years ago studied the question of the postponement of the elections on Sunday, but decided that the turnout is unlikely to increase, but creates new difficulties, for example, by voting, those voters who leave for the weekend somewhere to relax.
People who follow British politics occasionally and only on the headlines, and remember from school a couple of verbal “tories — Whigs”, often think that in Britain there are only two parties. A maximum of three.
In fact, although the leading national parties, and in fact now two — Conservative and labour — in the last part of the house of Commons was represented by twelve parties.
“Carrying Nonsense Assholes”
In addition to the conservatives and the labour party is the party of “Liberal Democrats” (in 2010-2015 they were Junior partners of the conservatives in the coalition government), the Green Party United Kingdom independence, as well as regional parties: the Scottish national party (the largest faction after the conservatives and labour), the Welsh “plaid Cymru” (“Party of Wales”) and four Northern Irish parties: the Democratic unionist, Social democratic labour, Unionist party of Ulster and Sinn FEIN.
And it is only those parties, whose deputies were elected to Parliament. For example, Prime Minister Theresa may in the area Maidenhead West of London for the mandate will be fought by candidates from the Official Party Carrying a Monstrous Raving Idiot (The Official Monster Raving Loony Party, OPENBP), the Party for animal welfare, Fair party, the Christian people’s Union, and four independent candidates.
The leader of labour’s Jeremy Corbyn in the constituency of Islington North in the North of London, too, beating the candidate of the comic OPENBP, as well as members of the Socialist party of great Britain Communist League and two independent candidates.
The County libdemov leader Tim Farron is running an independent candidate Mr. fish stick.
The first guy in the County
The electoral system in Britain — only majority, that is, all members of the house of Commons are elected in single-seat districts (their recently — 650), and in one round.
This system has many critics, but to change it is not solved, it would be too drastic scrapping of the tradition.
Defenders of majoritarian systems say so each member feels better the relationship with their constituents.
Critics argue that this system has strong distortion of the will of the majority of voters.
In other European democracies, the Parliament or lower house of Parliament, as a rule, fully or partially choose in a proportional system, that is, the voters voted for national or regional party list and the party receives mandates in proportion to votes.
On Thursdays elections for the Parliament started with the reign of Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin
In the British system, it is theoretically possible that the majority of seats will get a party, much less popular than rivals. For this it is sufficient by a narrow margin to win in most districts, cleaned losing the rest of the County.
But that’s the theory, but in practice, of course, in all districts there are supporters of different parties.
This, however, leads to results which many also consider a distortion of the will of the people. In the election in one round with multiple candidates mandate to win only a relatively small percent of the vote.
In modern history it has been winning with a score of twenty percent, it is theoretically possible to mandate and with even more modest result.
If, say, ten candidates in the district gaining about equally of votes, to win only 10% with a small tail. “And the remaining 90% feel cheated and without a representative in the Parliament,” say the supporters of electoral reform.
Voters don’t want to feel deceived — and that leads to yet another not very desirable manifestation of the shortcomings of odnotowano majority system: it forces people to vote “tactically”.
If a candidate from your favorite party is considered to be impassable, his supporters give voice to the least unpleasant for them the candidate of those who are the chances of winning, and it occurs often.
However, under a proportional system supporters of minor parties are also facing such a problem.
Speaking a year ago with the traditional speech to both houses of Parliament, Queen Elizabeth could not know what lies ahead – “brakcet” and early elections
Opponents of the majoritarian claim, referring in particular to this “tactical voting” is that it preserves the actual bipartisanship.
Their opponents argue that just elections for the districts and allow to stand at least hope for the success of the various small parties and independent candidates.
Candidates are foreigners
In most democracies of the world to nominate candidates for election have a right only citizens of the countries, but in the former British Empire in the elections of the house of Commons can stand not only United Kingdom citizens, citizens of Ireland and citizens of Commonwealth countries with the right to freely enter and reside in Britain.
Become an independent candidate for Parliament is very simple: it is sufficient to collect the signatures of ten registered voters in the district, to correctly fill out and file these documents in time for 19 working days before the election.
The procedure of registration of candidates from political parties is also quite simple, as the official registration of parties.
When the Electoral Commission of great Britain and Northern Ireland now was 405 parties from large to microscopic.
These include, for example, the party “Beer, baccy and greaves, al-Zababida party Uuugh” party “Snout out of the trough”, the party “Children of the Atom” Party space fleets. There is a Party of common sense.
Formally, the Prime winner Winston Churchill could remain Prime Minister indefinitely – the law allowed. But in 1945, he declared the election, which he lost to labour’s Clement Attlee
Until recently, the Prime Minister theoretically had the right to call new elections anytime.
Many years ago, that was remembered by the President of Russia Vladimir Putin, justifying the originality of the Russian “sovereign democracy”: here in Britain, he said, the Prime Minister can hold office as long as you want.
De facto, of course, the election and change of Prime Ministers in Britain took place quite regularly, and in the last six years, this argument has lost its force and de jure.
In 2011, Britain had enacted the “Act on the fixed term of the Parliament”, and under this law, elections to the House of Commons should now take place every five years on the first Thursday of may.
Early elections are allowed in two circumstances: when the vote of no confidence in the government and in the case of a dissolution and new elections will vote more than two thirds of deputies.
The last procedure took advantage of the Prime Minister, Theresa may, announced in the April re-election.
Jyri Vendik. Russian service Bi-bi-si