[ISL] On dual member proportional representation and the Island

[rfmcdonald]

"Electoral Reform: Dual Member Proportional Explained" (Watch on YouTube)

Facebook's Stephen shared the above video explaining dual-member proportional representation, an alternative to first-past-the-post voting that is being put up to a referendum in a couple of months on the Island.

The 1st seat in every district is awarded to the candidate who receives the most votes, similar to first-past-the-post voting (FPTP). The 2nd seat is awarded to one of the remaining district candidates so that proportionality is achieved across the region, using a calculation that aims to award parties their seats in the districts where they had their strongest performances.

[. . .]

Under DMP, a voter receives a district-specific ballot paper with several options. Each option is of one of the following types:

a pair of ranked candidates (primary and secondary) affiliated with the same party;
a sole candidate affiliated with a party;
an independent candidate.
Similar to FPTP, a voter selects one option on the ballot. The distinguishing feature of a DMP ballot is that parties may list two candidates. If a party nominates two candidates, a vote for the party initially supports the primary candidate. The secondary candidate is only considered if the primary candidate has won the district's 1st seat; in this case, the party's district votes are transferred to the secondary candidate at half their value. This gives the secondary candidate a chance to be elected as well, but the 50% weighting makes it challenging for a party to win both seats in a single district. In a typical district, the primary candidates of two different parties will be elected.

This is an interesting system. Were I able to vote, I might well go for this, as it does retain the democratic elements I have found lacking in other proposals.