The Next Government How Will It Be Elected?

As we go into 2013, it is likely that there will be a long drawn out period when it will be the coming elections that will dominate the thinking, if you can call it that, of the government and all those connected with it.

One serious problem, to which scant publicity or attention has been given at any level is the growing shambles and unreliable mess of our electoral system and it seems to be getting worse. 

Work has been done recently but will the effort to address the issues be made in time?

Typically, there is now in the UK a raft of laws, regulations and guidance which has gone past the point of understanding of those who are in charge of the administration of elections. 

This can impact both on the possible results and the danger of an electorate that distrusts and begins to avoid voting.  If this happens then any democracy we have left becomes deformed and even more limited in influence.

One very worrying feature is that many of those who have run elections in the past and have a body of experience and knowledge are leaving in numbers.  Those who take over are faced with a system that is almost incomprehensible.

Yet we are all talking about “localism” and referenda and direct electing of key officials and the rest.  It might be better if we concentrated first on making sure the electoral system is functioning properly, reliable and understandable by the mass of the electorate.

The longer, but quite short, article on the subject is:

http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/2012/09/20/uk-electoral-law-james/#more-26974

Why is it that so much is descending into chaos?  What can happen if a population loses confidence both in the system and those at the top?  See the picture above.