Ever wonder how elections actually work? The answer lies in electoral systems.  

Not to be confused with the Electoral College, an electoral system is a set of rules for casting and counting votes and determining who wins. Different countries use different methods to choose their leaders. Some systems can declare a winner with just 34% of the vote. Others require over 50%. Some give voters multiple choices on one ballot. Others split power based on exact vote percentages. 

These differences shape entire democracies. They determine whether your vote counts the same as everyone else’s, how many parties can compete, and how well your government represents what people actually want. 

Let’s explore the most popular types of electoral systems and how they work in the real world.  

Plurality and Majority Electoral Systems: When the Most Votes Win 

Whoever gets the most votes wins. Seems fair and sensible, right? Both plurality and majority systems operate on this model, but there’s at least one major difference between them. Let’s compare:  

Plurality System 

Its alternate name, “First-Past-the-Post,” makes it sound more like a horse race, but plurality simply means that the candidate with the most votes wins. You’ll find plurality electoral systems in place in many areas globally: 

  • North America (including the United States, Canada, and Caribbean nations) 
  • The United Kingdom 
  • Asia 
  • Africa 
  • South Pacific island nations 

Imagine three candidates are running. Candidates A and B each get 33% of the vote, and Candidate C gets 34%. In plurality voting, Candidate C wins. It represents the choice of the people—but in this example, just barely. 

Voters line up at the polls to cast their ballots during a U.S. election. 

Majority System 

Seems straightforward, right? But Candidate C may not want to deliver that acceptance speech just yet. In a majority electoral system, they would not win the election.  

Why? Because majority system candidates must earn more than 50% of the vote to win. Countries that opt for this type of system (like Australia and France) argue that an absolute majority—more than 50%—reflects the will of a greater number of voters.  

Proportional Representation (PR): When Seats Match Vote Percentages 

What if elections worked like splitting a pizza? If your party gets 53% of the votes, you get 53% of the governing seats. No more, no less. 

That’s proportional representation in action. This system focuses on parties rather than individual candidates and is most often applied to legislative bodies. Supporters argue it’s the fairest system because it best reflects what most voters want and virtually ends gerrymandering. New Zealand, Germany, and Hong Kong all use this type of electoral system. 

Preferential Voting: Ranking Candidates by Choice 

Ever wished you could vote for your favorite candidate without “wasting” your vote? Preferential voting lets you do just that.  

Instead of picking just one candidate, voters rank them in order of preference. If your first choice gets eliminated? Your vote automatically goes to your second choice. This continues until someone wins a majority. 

Overall, voters have a greater say with this type of voting. You can vote for who you actually want (without worrying about helping your least favorite candidate win). 

Where can you find this type of electoral system? Though we also mentioned it as a majority system, Australia is actually a mixed system that includes majority and preferential voting. When voting for members of their parliament, Australians use the preferential voting system.  

Mixed Systems 

What if a country wants to pick and choose from different electoral systems? In that case,  they’re using a mixed system. Some countries use plurality or majority for some elections and proportional representation for others. Voters get two votes: one for a candidate and one for a party.  

The advantages? Votes count proportionately, and local communities get fair representation. This system is called Mixed Member Proportional (MMP). You’ll find it used in: 

  • Bolivia 
  • Hungary 
  • Italy 
  • Mexico 
  • Venezuela 

Frequently Asked Questions 

Let’s quickly review what we’ve learned!: 

  • What is an electoral system? 
    An electoral system is the set of rules that decide how votes are cast and counted to determine election winners.
     
  • What are common types of electoral systems in the world? 
    In a plurality system, like we have in the United States, the candidate with the most votes wins.  

    A majority system requires the winner to have more than 50% of the vote.  

    Proportional representation gives each party the percentage of governing seats that voters awarded them.  

    Preferential voting has voters choose their candidates in order of preference by numbering them on the ballot.  

    Mixed systems can pull elements from different electoral systems. 

Choose the Right Online Political Science Degree for Your Future 

Planning a career in politics, government, or law? Build the foundation you’ll need with The University of Texas Permian Basin’s online Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.  

Through courses like American National Politics, you’ll explore our electoral system and other aspects of government and compare political systems of other nations. Choose a program focus area to match your career or personal interests! 

This program is available online exclusively at this UT System institution.  

Apply now! 

Sources: 
https://aceproject.org/ace-en/topics/es/default
https://fairvote.org/resources/electoral-systems

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