ADVERTISEMENT
Only 12% of voters in ‘red wall’ seats oppose replacing the First Past the Post voting system used for Westminster elections, according to a new poll. In comparison, almost four times as many voters support a change to Proportional Representation.
The poll was commissioned by campaign group Make Votes Matter and conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies. A representative sample of 1,500 voters was surveyed across 40 traditional Labour heartlands in the Midlands, North of England, and Wales. All 40 constituencies had switched to the Conservatives at the last General Election (or last year’s Hartlepool by-election).
Respondents were asked whether they support switching the UK’s voting system to Proportional Representation, which ensures that the proportion of seats a party receives in Parliament closely reflects the proportion of votes they received.
The results
The results showed that 47%of ‘red wall’ voters support making this move, of whom 26% “support” and 21% “strongly support”. Only 5%”oppose” it, and only 7% “strongly oppose”. 41% don’t know or neither support nor oppose.
Only two countries in Europe use First Past the Post for general elections: the dictatorship in Belarus, and the UK. First Past the Post does not ensure that seats in Parliament reflect the share of votes that political parties receive overall. It can result in governments being elected on a minority of the vote, and ‘wrong winner elections’, where a party receives the most MPs despite not winning the most votes.
Klina Jordan, Chief Executive of Make Votes Matter, who commissioned the poll, said:
“The whole country wants to ditch our outdated voting system, and the ‘red wall’ is no different. It’s obvious to the voters that a system which ignores millions of us isn’t up to scratch, and it’s time for Parliament to listen.
“In key battleground seats, which will likely decide the next election, voters are crying out for a different way of doing politics. With dissatisfaction with democracy reaching unprecedented levels, politicians need to take action or they risk looking totally out of touch, allowing this country to spiral into more chaos and desperate inequality.”
49% of ‘red wall’ voters said that “if they are serious about delivering on important issues that affect me, politicians should have strong policies on democratic reform”, compared to 21 percent of voters who said they should not.
Breaking
The news comes as the Labour Party Conference has just voted for a manifesto commitment to Proportional Representation for General Elections.
We need your help! The press in our country is dominated by billionaire-owned media, many offshore and avoiding paying tax. We are a citizen journalism publication but still have significant costs. If you believe in what we do, please consider subscribing to the Bylines Gazette 🙏
