Reply #3: Sweetie - don't fret. It is always this way in a three party state. They

[applegrove]

often have a first past the post way of adding things up which gives more to the first party (in terms of seats) then less to the second party. That way there is a majority more often than if they just gave each party the percentage of votes.

It means that you do not get coalition as often (think Israel for non first past the post situations). So somebody who wins 44% wins the legislature for 4 or 5 years. Someone who wins 37% of the vote and that is the highest anyone got..would end up with a minority government where they would have to form coalitions periodically (actually any time a budget bill tries to pass). That way they have to agree to compromise with other people the whole time they are in power. Or they go to election within a year.

You have a two party system in the US. Usually the president gets more than 50% of the vote. But not always. I think the variability with a three party system is more (in terms of swings) which is great.

But you also have an executive branch that a PM of Britain or Canada or Australia never has. The Prime Ministers are nothing more than the House of Commons Majority leader. And they have to be on the floor of the house to answer question 4 days a week while the house sits. So a George Bush type leader (puppet) could never get into power. You have to be able to be on your toes (looking good in photo ops is much less important than the ability to debate - which is a 1 hour photo op every day).

So with the multi party state .. the advantage is given very much to the group of people who have the highest percentage of the vote and as long as they are above 40% of the vote.. they get a clear power.

Too bad MT was in power for so long. But she was a great debater. No other reason than that that she won.

Often the third, fourth parties (and in Canada the 2nd party because they are usually the Conservatives..who just cannot win the heart of a larger percentage of Canadians without going Liberal in the end) want the first past the post thing to be done with and stopped. Constant coalitions and negotiations would allow them to extract a pound of flesh every so often from the big guys..when now the big parties pretty much do what they want when they get into power. But in Canada things have been worked into smaller groups and it may be that minority governments are more common that before (which is almost the same thing a coalition governments though loose). It was one of those Canadian minority governments in the 1960s that gave us Universal Health Care. And we love it more than anything!!