• HOW BRITAIN’S ELECTION PROCESS WORKS • ------------------------------------------- British voters are heading to the polls for the third time in less than four years, after lawmakers backed Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s call for a snap election just two weeks before Christmas ------------------------------------------- Britain last holds December election in 1923 when Conservative Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin (right) seeks to strengthen his grip on party leadership. Baldwin takes most seats in House of Commons but is 50 short of majority – resulting in hung parliament WHY AN ELECTION HAS BEEN CALLED NOW Under Fixed-Term Parliaments Act 2011, next election is not due until 2022. To pass his stalled Brexit deal – divorce from European Union – Prime Minister Johnson is gambling that early vote will give him parliamentary majority to enact his plan ------------------------------------------- HOUSE OF COMMONS Members of Parliament (MPs) in Chamber of House of Commons. Members of government are seated on left, with opposition on right House of Commons Speaker Seated on chair at rear Ceremonial mace on table at centre – Parliament cannot lawfully meet, debate or pass legislation without mace ------------------------------------------- CONSTITUENCIES United Kingdom has 650 Parliamentary constituencies, representing communities roughly equal in size. Each constituency elects one MP ELECTORATE Voters must be 18 years old on polling day. Many claim it is undemocratic to deny voting rights to 16-year-olds – they pay taxes, but cannot elect MPs who decide how to spend them ------------------------------------------- NORTHERN IRELAND Constituencies 18 Average electorate 68,300 UK population 66.44m Total electorate (Dec 2018) 45,775,800 WALES 40 56,000 SCOTLAND Constituencies 59 Average electorate 67,200 ENGLAND 533 72,200 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 ------------------------------------------- MARGINALS – BATTLEGROUND CONSTITUENCIES Most hotly contested seats at December 12 ballot will be in marginal constituencies; places with winning majorities – number of votes between first and second placed candidates – of under 10% or about 5,000 votes. In 2017 51 seats were won with majority of 2% or less of votes cast. Of these so-called ultra-marginals, eight seats had majority of under 50 votes. Campaigns will also focus on constituencies that voted strongly either to “Leave” or “Remain” in 2016 EU referendum ------------------------------------------- 1 North East Fife SNP majority in 2017: 2 votes Brexit referendum result Remain 63.7% ------------------------------------------- 2 Kensington Labour majority:20 Remain 68.8% ------------------------------------------- 3 Perth and North Perthshire SNP majority: 21 Remain 60.1% ------------------------------------------- 4 Dudley North Independent majority: 22 Leave 71.4% ------------------------------------------- 5 Newcastle-under-Lyme Labour majority: 30 Leave 61.6% ------------------------------------------- 6 Southampton Itchen Conservative majority: 31 Leave 60.3% ------------------------------------------- 7 Richmond Park Conservative majority: 45 Remain 71.3% ------------------------------------------- 8 Crewe and Nantwich Labour majority: 48 Leave 60.3% ------------------------------------------- 9 Canterbury Labour majority: 185 Remain 54.7% ------------------------------------------- 10 Hastings and Rye Independent majority: 346 Leave 55.9% ------------------------------------------- COST OF DEMOCRACY 2015: General election £114.7m 2016: EU membership referendum £129.1m 2017: Snap general election £140.9m ------------------------------------------- FIRST-PAST-THE-POST VOTING Britain – like U.S., Canada and India – uses first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting system. Leader of party that wins majority of 650 constituencies, 326 seats or more, becomes Prime Minister ------------------------------------------- Critics of FPTP: Say it fails to give fair representation of voters’ choices. Alternative is proportional representation (PR) – as used in many countries including Germany, Italy and Denmark ------------------------------------------- 2017 ELECTION RESULT Conservative 318 seats Share of vote 42.3% Labour 262 seats Share of vote 40.0% SNP 35 3.0% Liberal Democrats 12 7.4% DUP 10 0.9% Sinn Féin 7 0.7% Plaid Cymru 4 0.5% Green Party 1 1.6% Independent 1 0.1% 650 SEATS ------------------------------------------- WHERE THE MAIN PARTIES STAND ON BREXIT Conservative and Unionist Party: Boris Johnson (left) wants UK to leave European Union with revised Brexit deal he agreed with EU. Agreement has yet to be approved by UK Parliament ------------------------------------------- Labour: Jeremy Corbyn wants to renegotiate Johnson’s Brexit deal and put it to another public vote – all within six months ------------------------------------------- Liberal Democrats: Party leader Jo Swinson says Lib Dem majority government would cancel Brexit ------------------------------------------- Plaid Cymru: Leader Adam Price backs remaining in EU, despite Wales voting “Leave” in referendum ------------------------------------------- Change UK: Pro-EU party with three parliamentary candidates, led by Anna Soubry – supports People’s Vote on Brexit ------------------------------------------- SNP: Nicola Sturgeon wants UK to stay in EU. Calling for second referendums on Brexit and Scottish independence ------------------------------------------- Democratic Unionist Party: Party leader Arlene Foster wants UK to leave EU but rejects Johnson’s revised deal ------------------------------------------- Green Party: Party’s only MP, Caroline Lucas, believes UK should stay in EU – wants another referendum on Brexit ------------------------------------------- Brexit Party: Led by Nigel Farage, wants UK to leave EU with no deal, in what he calls “clean-break Brexit” ------------------------------------------- Sources: Democratic Dashboard, House of Commons Library, Reuters Pictures: Hulton Archive, Getty Images © GRAPHIC NEWS