I sometimes hear PR campaigners concede that somehow first past the post would be a fair system in cases where the "winning" party got more than 50% of the vote - because, say, 51% means "the will of the people"

This is wrong on a number of levels.

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Firstly, there is no “will of the people”.

I challenge anyone to find even 10 people who agree 100% on all political subjects. So the idea that we can express the “will” of 50 million British adults is ludicrous.

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But far more important than this is the basic misunderstanding of what democracy is.

Democracy has nothing to do with “winning” and everything to do with representation and deliberation.

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In other words, democracy means that *all* voters get represented in Parliament, not just those who vote for the “winner”.

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Why is it important that *all* voters get represented? There are three reasons:

1. For a country to be a democracy, Parliament must reflect all of society (not just the majority)

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2. When everyone feels their voice is being heard in Parliament, they are far more likely to be willing to compromise for the greater good.

This would mean citizens broadly backing the prime minister, even if said PM is from a party you disagree with profoundly.

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3. Having a Parliament representing all voters means one filled with MPs of different ages, genders, skin colours and religions. This would redefine what modern Britain is and allow us to harness the full potential of our diverse population.

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