The Irish electoral system has by in large been kinder to the larger parties in terms of seat bonuses when comparing to the smaller parties.. Both FF and FG have benefited from this since independence. However, FF have been by far the greater beneficiary in the last two general elections. In the ‘02 General election they got somewhat less that 42% and got 49% of the seats available. One of the many contributory factors, though not the only one is the number of 3 seat constituencies in areas where FF are strongest.
However, this very preponderance of 3 seat constituencies in which FF hold 2 of the 3 seats becomes a major issue for that party when their national support drops below the figure of 1 in 3.
The Irish electoral system of Proportional Representation (PR) by means of the Single Transfer Vote (STV) actually will guarantee you 2 seats out of 3 for 50% +2 votes of the total valid poll if you run just 2 candidates and if it is evenly shared between those two candidates. This amounts to a vote of a slight bit more than 50% getting you all of 66% of the seats in those 3 seats constituencies. This is a whopping 15% bonus. Not bad at all for a supposedly proportionate voting system. Indeed, in practical terms getting 40% will usually mean you get 2 seats in such 3 seat constituencies if it has been reasonably competitive, say if the smaller parties such as the PDs, Greens, and SF have contested along with an independent or non-party candidate. In order to ensure that the % figures remains on the right side of 40% FF will often run sweeper or some might say spoiler candidates who are designed not alone to ensure that their total amounts to over 40% but that the remaining vote can't coalesce sufficiently around two of the remaining candidates. This increases the chances of a result of 2 from 3 even if one of those two is elected without reaching the quota.
However, as the total % available to the 2 main FF candidates drifts down towards 1/3 or 33% the likelihood of another 2 candidates getting enough votes to squeeze out one of those 2 FF candidates starts to increases exponentially. The other factor here is the intra-party competition and the tradition of appeals to "lend me your No.1, sure John is ok." This has lead to the situation arising, which seems to cause such surprise in so many observers from overseas, of long time sitting TDs losing their seats to their running mates who some might have been as being on the under billing.
Taking Donegal SW as an example FF got 42% there which mirrors their national result almost exactly and their two candidates
Donegal SW in 2002
FF Pat Gallagher 7,740 21.72% 0.87
FF Mary Coughlan 7,257 20.36% 0.81
FG Dinny McGinley 4,378 12.29% 0.49
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FG James White 4,680 13.13% 0.53
SF Pearse Doherty 2,696 7.57% 0.30
Lab Séamas Rodgers 1,079 3.03% 0.12
SF Tom Dignam 1,133 3.18% 0.13
Now, imagine if the national picture is again mirrored here with exactly the same line up and FF were to drop 6%, coupled with a corresponding reversal in the rates of transfers that occurred in ’02. One possible group of scenarios is that the loss is evenly divided between the two FF candidates. In a situation where the 6% were to coalesce around one of the unsuccessful candidates White or Doherty, or the final successful candidate McGinley then they should be able to ensure that 2 from those three would be elected. Only if the 6% is scattered evenly (with the attendant attrition when transferred) would the two FF TDs be favoured to survive. In ’02 the transfer rate to the FF candidates was 25% compared to up to 65% internal to the non FF candidates. Even when Doherty of SF was eliminated in ’02 40% of his vote was available to be transferred between the two remaining FG candidates.
FF Pat Gallagher 18.72% 0.87
FF Mary Coughlan 17.36% 0.81
FG Dinny McGinley 12.29% 0.49 (18.29% 0.49)
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FG James White 13.13% 0.53 (19.13% 0.53)
SF Pearse Doherty 7.57% 0.30 (13.57% 0.30)
Lab Séamas Rodgers 3.03% 0.12
SF Tom Dignam 3.18% 0.13
Couple such a reduction in the total party vote available with the greatest fear of any Irish politician, that the perception that they are safe will get out and they will see that on election night their 1st preference vote will go wandering about assisting others who were not in any real danger at all. Some have made a tradition of this electoral poor mouth and become such quota sitters that in area where once their party challenged for two seats they are now fighting it out over the one (Kerry North is an example of this for FF, Galway West for FG).
So in the DSW situation outlined above where the 6% is evenly distributed would most likely not happen at all. Instead, we would get the following.
FF Pat Gallagher 20.72% 0.87
FF Mary Coughlan 15.36% 0.81
FG Dinny McGinley 12.29% 0.49 (18.29% 0.49)
________________________________________
FG James White 13.13% 0.53 (19.13% 0.53)
SF Pearse Doherty 7.57% 0.30 (13.57% 0.30)
Lab Séamas Rodgers 3.03% 0.12
SF Tom Dignam 3.18% 0.13
In this situation Coughlan could possibly not be saved. Note the drop we are talking about from 42% to 36% is not as great as some of the polls are currently predicting.
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