a. Party List Voting

Party list voting systems are the most common form of proportional representation constituting over 80% of the PR systems used worldwide. It is followed in most European democracies and in many newly democratized countries, including South Africa.

Legislators are elected in large, multi-member districts. Each party puts up a list of candidates equal to the number of seats in the district. Independent candidates may also run, and they are listed separately as if they are their own party.

On the ballot, voters indicate their preference for a particular party and the parties then receive seats in proportion to their share of the vote. For instance, in a five-member district, if a party wins 40% of the vote, it would win two of the five seats. The two winning candidates would be chosen according to their position on the list.

There are two types of list systems:

♤ Closed list

♤ Open list.

In a closed list system, the party fixes the order in which the candidates are listed and elected, and the voter simply casts a vote for the party as a whole. Voters are not able to indicate their preference for any candidates on the list, but must accept the list in the order presented by the party. Winning candidates are selected in the exact order they appear on the original list.

The Open list system allows voters to express a preference for particular candidates, not just parties. Voters are presented with unordered or random lists of candidates chosen in party primaries. They cannot vote for a party directly, but must cast a vote for an individual candidate. This vote counts for the specific candidate as well as for the party. The final order completely depends on the number of votes won by each candidate on the list. The most popular candidates rise to the top of the list and have a better chance of being elected.