Thank you to James Tourgout of Dorset Echo for calling attention to the consultation on whether elections to Weymouth and Portland Borough council will change from ‘election by thirds’ to electing all councillors at one time every four years (https://www.dorsetforyou.com/all-out-elections).
Given the fact that WPBC does not have the power to change from the appalling first past the post voting system to a better system, I favour the existing system of voting by thirds on the grounds that it provides continuity. Local councils are pretty constrained in what they do, but they do have the power to make disastrous decisions. What are really required are more independently minded councillors who will hold officers and key councillors (members of the Management Committee, and especially its chair) to account. First past the post however encourages people to vote on party lines, especially when electing several people at one time. Experience in areas (such as London) where three member wards are the norm, all being elected at one time, shows that most people cast all their votes for candidates of the same party, and therefore do not discriminate between candidates of that party. This results in most wards being represented by only one party, although voters’ opinions may be pretty mixed. This is not the case where the Single Transferable Vote is used as in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Not only is that system more proportional but it encourages voters to think candidates as people not just representatives of a national party, and to have their choices respected.
David Smith
