Conference 2021: Why Christians in Labour need to reject our antiquated voting system
Short Read (5 minutes)
Come election time each party bangs it's drums of war, activists pound the streets and we in Labour fight for our chance to get into government.
However, the drums of war aren’t heard in most of the country. We all know where an election is won or lost. We all know where we put our time and effort in campaigning.
Marginal seats.
Fierce battles are only really fought in some 150 constituencies that have a chance of changing hands. There are close to 500 that receive very little attention in comparison. Activists are bussed in from around the country to help convince those people whose votes really matter to vote.
That is the truth of the matter. All votes are equal, but some are far more equal than others.
Labour for a new democracy campaign logo
That is where decision making is focused. Not, in our case, on the core of the Labour vote, but on those voters who matter more than others. Less than a hundred thousand people in marginal seats determine an election outcome.
How can we be for the many, when to win we must focus on the few?
If you live in Dorset and vote Labour, you have never been represented by a politician you voted for. In fact if you live in Dorset, you have been represented by a conservative since before women got the right to vote. To all intents and purposes those Labour members in safe Conservative seats are disenfranchised.
How can we be for the many, when to win we must focus on the few?
It is actually worse for Labour than a section of voters being disenfranchised, as the current first past the post system is systematically biased in favour of the conservatives. In 19 of the last 20 elections the UK has voted to the left of the conservatives. Yet 2/3rds of the time we have had a conservative majority government.
There are two reasons for this:
First, there are several parties to the left of the Conservatives which split the so-called ‘progressive vote’ allowing the conservative candidate to enter parliament on a minority of the vote.
Second, left wing voters are concentrated in cities where we have huge majorities, meaning we get fewer MPs for our votes. In contrast the conservative vote is spread effectively across the country maximising their chances of winning a majority of seats.
In 14 of the last 15 general elections from 1966 onwards, over 50% of voters opted for either Labour or other left party (liberal or other progressive). The exception was 2015.
What then is the answer?
Simply put, let’s make every vote truly equal with proportional representation (PR).
Imagine the impact of everyone’s vote truly mattering. Regardless if you lived in Dorset, London or the Red Wall your vote would directly impact the result in parliament. We could finally campaign with conviction to the many, not the few who have a disproportionate impact on our country through our distorted democracy.
How then can we get Labour on board with this vision for the future?
The campaign coalition, Labour for a New Democracy, has been working to get PR debated at this year's conference. 222 CLPs have already passed policy in favour of PR, with dozens poised to send motions to conference. The L4ND campaign has attracted support from across the Labour party and wider Labour movement.
The fight for equality is at the core of our Labour mission - and that of Christians on the left. If you want to see a future where every vote is equal, then please table this conference motion calling for PR at your branch/CLP.
I also ask for your prayers, that through the debate in coming weeks and at conference 2021, PR will be the policy which unifies the party around a positive vision for the future.
Samuel Kind
Samuel works for Make Votes Matter and Labour for a new democracy (L4ND) and is a member of Christians on the Left.
Disagree with Samuel?
Perhaps you think that there is a valuable counter-argument, or that PR is flawed too, or maybe you’d like to suggest some improvements to the PR argument?
Christians on the Left is a “broad church within a broad church” so we’d love to hear your views. Do write to us at info@christiansontheleft.org.uk with your comments or a counter-article.
