Matt wrote: > It is not true that 1/120 of the vote gets a seat. It is %1.5 minimum > (almost double 1/120). Also, surplus votes are redistributed > proportionality according to the size of the various parties, > with the > exception that parties can make public redistribution > agreements with each > other prior to the election.
Thank you for this update. My source showed parties with less than 1.5% of the votes getting seats. Even so, with a threshold of 1.5%, it is one of the smallest, and it does allow representation of parties with less support than is common in most countries using party list PR (either by the operation of a de facto district threshold or by an arbitrary threshold of 5%). Small parties can, of course, lie any where along the political spectrum (however that spectrum is defined in a particular country), but they tend to be more frequent at the extremes of the political spectrum. I stand by what I said about the adverse effects of giving representation to so many small parties, as exemplified by the politics of Israel. James ---- Election-methods mailing list - see http://electorama.com/em for list info
