Ian Simpson from the Electoral Reform Society (ERS), gave a talk about proportional voting systems at One Tree Books in Petersfield.

The ERS is an independent organisation that heads the campaign for the democratic rights of the people and provides key information, such as in-depth analysis of General Elections.

Speaking to the Petersfield Post, Ian said the Society’s preferred voting system is the Single Transferable Vote.

He explained: “People get the opportunity to rank candidates in order of preference within a constituency and then the number of members of Parliament would be elected for that constituency to reflect the the broad spectrum of support in that area.

“However, there are a number of other electoral systems that could be used that are also proportional systems and would produce fairer outcomes for voters.”

It is currently used in the Assembly and local elections in Northern Ireland, Scotland’s local elections, and overseas in Australia and Malta.

Alternatively, there is Proportional Representation, where people have one vote and they vote for a party, usually within a large area or region.

Talking about this particular system, Ian said: “In Wales there are going to be constituencies with six members of The Senedd, they can be open or closed lists.

“A party will produce a list and say the party wins two seats in that constituency, the top two people in their list will get elected - that's a closed system.

“In an open system, voters can, as well as voting for a party, also indicate a preference to a particular candidate within that list, which can affect who gets elected. It reflects the balance and the overall outcome reflects the balance of opinion within the constituency. “

In addition, there is the Additional Member System, a mix of First Past the Post constituencies and Party Lists.

When asked what has driven the need for change in the voting system, Ian replied: “If you just look at the result of the last general election in 2024, I think it has become such a fragmented political system.

“It was the most disproportionate election in our history, and had a government that received two thirds of MPs and one third of the vote. It is a system that's designed for two parties when people are no longer voting like that.

“We're trying to squeeze people's choices into a system that no longer works.”

He further added that the 2024 General Election was the lowest combined Labour and Conservative vote share since Labour became the main opposition party.

Adding: “Labour's 33.7 per cent is the lowest vote share for a winning party at any election over that same 100 year period.”

On his final thoughts, Ian said: “People are clearly wanting to express their vote in different ways, and it feels to some extent that the system is broken. If you look at the last general election result and no longer fit for purpose.

“The more that we see this kind of result, then I'm hopeful that more and more people will see the need for proportional representation.”