Complete the account of electoral systems.
The single strongest determinant of proportionality is district ______. The divisor formula that systematically favours larger parties is ______. Duverger held that plurality single-member districts tend towards ______-party competition. Disproportionality is commonly measured by the ______ index.
Word bank: magnitude · D'Hondt · two · Gallagher · threshold · Sainte-Laguë
Hints
- The first blank is the component that beats the formula.
- The last blank names the standard least-squares measure.
Show the answer
The single strongest determinant of proportionality is district magnitude. The divisor formula that systematically favours larger parties is D'Hondt. Duverger held that plurality single-member districts tend towards two-party competition. Disproportionality is commonly measured by the Gallagher index.
The first and second blanks together explain most of Spain's results: D'Hondt favours larger parties and small district magnitudes amplify that further, so a system correctly described as proportional delivers outcomes much closer to a majoritarian one in the smaller provinces.
Practise Electoral Systems
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More questions on Electoral Systems
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