The problems with first-past-the-post are clear to me. A system that elects Members of Parliament who actually carry the support of less than half of their electorate and permits government on the same basis is not as democratic as it should be. The complacency of MPs who are elected on that basis is staggering. It angers me that my vote counts for less than one cast in a more marginal seat elsewhere. Bournemouth East is a safe seat for our MP, Tobias Ellwood. Because another party would have to achieve such a massive swing against Mr Ellwood, his is one of those seats that is so unlikely to change hands that it barely features on television coverage at a General Election - unlike those marginal seats that formed the BBC's Downing Street paving-slabs. It was in those marginals that the election was really fought. A vote there stood a far better chance of achieving the required swing to unseat its incumbent; effectively it was worth more than mine. For my vote to fully count toward the outcome of an election, I therefore must move to live in a marginal constituency. Obviously, a democratic system that requires me to do that is seriously flawed. Moreover, although Mr Ellwood claims he did fight to hold his seat, he did not really need to. It was so hard for one of the other major parties to unseat him that they sensibly directed their resources elsewhere - to the battle for more marginal seats - and were barely heard of in Bournemouth. I felt cheated. AV will not spell the end of safe seats, but it will at least ensure that an MP like Mr Ellwood has to fight for everyone's vote - even their second and third preferences - rather than being able to simply depend on his substantial core vote.
It might not be AV that is used in elections in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and for our elections to the European Parliament, but there is a proportional element to those elections that helps ensure that the parliaments and assemblies in those places are more representative of the electorate than the UK Parliament is. I have never understood why proportionality is appropriate for the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish electorate and for elections to Europe, but not for Westminster. Again, I feel cheated.
The 'No!' campaign for tomorrow's referendum has made much of the cost of changing our electoral system. That argument is infuriating! As a country, we supposedly value democracy so highly that we promote it around the world, condemn countries that flaunt it and send our own soldiers to fight for it in other oppressed lands. We should be proud of that, of course, but we should also make sure our own house is in order. In Libya and Syria people value democracy so highly they are paying for it with their lives. Millions of pounds might seem like a lot, especially in a time of financial difficulty, but it is far less than the cost others are footing for democracy.
It is true that AV is not perfect - there are better systems for achieving proportional representation - but it does have the advantage of allowing us to keep our constituency representation at Westminster, and it is the best on offer. It has the potential to reconnect politicians to their electorate as they would have to take more of an interest in all voters, not only those for whom they might be the first preference. The problems with our democracy run deeper than that though. Turnout tends to be shockingly low and has been for too long, especially among certain groups of voters, like the young. Obviously, there are many reasons - children aren't properly educated in citizenship, some politicians' conduct has been outrageous, often political systems seem complex and unaccessible - but above all, I think, people feel the issues that matter most to them aren't properly addressed by our politics. Engaging people in our democracy has to begin at the grassroots - in their own neighbourhoods - and feed up from there. We need to feel that there is a way for us to take control of our own streets and schools and parks and youth centres, without referring to the sprawling bureaucracies local councils have become. Local democracy needs a shake-up - and not just by having elections for new authorities like for the Tories' planned Police Chiefs; I'm afraid there is such a thing as election-fatigue! For democracy to work, we need to find simple ways for people to become properly involved beyond just writing numbers next to the names of candidates they have vaguely heard of and never seen, and show them that it is worth it.
To be honest, I'm not overly optimistic for the outcome of tomorrow's poll. I shall vote nonetheless because doing so is a tribute to those who have gone before and fought and died for the right to do so and is small way for me to stand shoulder to shoulder with those brave souls who still fight and die for their same right.
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