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PassionatePossum t1_j4uf4dn wrote

Reply to comment by FiveFingerDisco in [OC] What if the UK used the German electoral system? by Yodoliyee

Part of the problem is the voting system. Because it allows a party to have an absolute majority in parliament despite only having a simple majority in the popular vote. So despite the fact that they have less than 50% of the popular vote they (more or less) get to push 100% of their policy goals.

In a system of proportional representation a party with a simple majority would need to form coalitions and make compromises to that at least some policy goals of the coalition partner are on the agenda.

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DodgerWalker t1_j4veewq wrote

I was so confused until I remembered that in the UK, the word “majority” means what we call a “plurality” in the US. I take it that absolute majority means more than half in this context, which is what we Americans just call a majority, while simple majority means the most, which Americans call a plurality.

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vwma t1_j4vu620 wrote

I think you misunderstood the comment. In political science both "absolute majority" and "simple majority" are what you would commonly refer to as "majority".

The difference is that a simple majority is defined as 50%+1 vote of all votes cast, whereas an absolute majority is 50%+1 vote of all possible votes

Edited: I re-read the comment, he used the wrong term, and should've said plurality instead of simple majority. I hope this now makes sense now.

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PassionatePossum t1_j4vgudl wrote

My mistake. I probably translated the terms a little too directly from German to English. But you are right, that’s what I meant.

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