The Electoral Reform Society is a campaign group based in the UK which promotes electoral reform. It was founded in January 1884 as the Proportional Representation Society by John Lubbock, the name was changed to Electoral Reform Society in 1958. It is believed to the oldest organisation concerned with electoral systems in the world. The current Chief Executive is Ken Ritchie. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Electoral reform projects seek to change the way that public desires are reflected in elections through electoral systems. ... Year 1884 (MDCCCLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... John Lubbock. ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Chief Executive may refer to: Chief Executive of Hong Kong Chief Executive of Macau Chief Executive Officer This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Ken Ritchie (born 1946) is a British psephologist, and the current Chief Executive of the Electoral Reform Society. ...

Aims

Since its formation, the society has promoted the use of the Single Transferable Vote (STV) in general elections. It also has many influences around the world in concern with electoral reformation. The mission of the society is to secure an electoral system in the UK which it believes will: This STV ballot for the Australian Senate illustrates group voting tickets. ... The United Kingdom has five distinct types of elections: general, local, regional, European and mayoral. ...

• Gives all votes equal value
• Give effective representation to all significant points of view within the electorate
• Not have the problem of tactical voting and votes wasted.
• Ensure the accountability of individual representatives to their electorates

The society recommends the Single Transferable Vote system in multi-member constituencies for general elections.

The Society's principal activities are:

• Lobbying politicians, political parties and opinion makers.
• Publishing books and leaflets.
• Running an education programme for schools, colleges and the general public.
• Arranging lectures and seminars.
• Analysing and commenting on public elections.
• Providing an information service to respond to enquiries about public elections and electoral procedure.

The Society is a founder member of the Make Votes Count Coalition. The Make Votes Count (MVC) Coalition campaigns for referendum on a more representative voting system for the United Kingdom. ...

History

The ERS was founded in January 1884 as the Proportional Representation Society by John Lubbock. The founding members included academics, barristers, and Conservative and Liberal MPs. Famous members included Charles Dodgson, C.P. Scott and Thomas Hare. Year 1884 (MDCCCLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... John Lubbock. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The Conservative Party (officially the Conservative and Unionist Party) is the second largest political party in the United Kingdom in terms of sitting Members of Parliament (MPs), the largest in terms of public membership, and is the second oldest extant political party in the world. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ... Photograph of Lewis Carroll taken by himself, with assistance Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (January 27, 1832 – January 14, 1898), better known by the pen name Lewis Carroll, was a British author, mathematician, Anglican clergyman, logician, and amateur photographer. ... Charles Prestwich Scott (October 26, 1846 - January 1, 1932) was a British journalist, publisher and politician. ... Thomas Hare (March 28, 1806 - May 6, 1891) was an English barrister who was involved in the theory and advocacy of election methods. ...

The Society campaigned for the introduction of STV until 1888. It then became inactive until 1904. It resumed campaigning for STV, succeeding in getting it introduced in local elections in Ireland, and in numerous religious, educational and professional organisations. This STV ballot for the Australian Senate illustrates group voting tickets. ... Year 1888 (MDCCCLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... 1904 (MCMIV) was a leap year starting on a Friday (see link for calendar). ... Rules for, and experience with, local elections vary widely across jurisdictions. ...

After World War II the Society suffered from financial problems and a lack of public interest in electoral reform. It was kept going for many decades by its Director, Enid Lakeman, an inveterate pamphleteer, public speaker and writer of letters to newspapers about STV. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

When Fianna Fáil twice (1959 and 1968) put to a referendum a proposal to abolish STV in Ireland and revert to first-past-the-post, Enid Lakeman led a successful ERS campaign to keep STV there.^[1] Fianna Fáil - The Republican Party (IPA ; traditionally translated by the party into English as Soldiers of Destiny, though the actual meaning is Soldiers [Fianna] of Ireland[1]), is currently the largest political party in the Republic of Ireland with 55,000 members. ... An example of a plurality ballot. ...

In 1973 STV was introduced in Northern Ireland for elections to local councils and to the new Northern Ireland Assembly, and the Society and its staff were called upon to advise in the programme of education set up by the government to train returning officers in the new techniques and raise public awareness in the Province of the implications of the new voting method. [1] 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... Anthem: UK: God Save the Queen Regional: (de facto) Londonderry Air Capital Belfast Largest city Belfast Official languages English (de facto), Irish, Ulster Scots 3, BSL, NISL, ISL Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Ian Paisley  - Deputy First Minister... The Northern Ireland Assembly was a legislative assembly set up by the Government of the United Kingdom on 3 May 1973 to restore devolved government to Northern Ireland with a power-sharing executive made up of unionists and nationalists. ... In United Kingdom, a Returning Officer is responsible for overseeing elections in one or more constituencies. ...

Interest in proportional representation revived sharply in the UK in 1974, and from then on the Electoral Reform Society was able to secure a higher public profile for its campaign for STV. 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ...

In 1983 the Society was recognised by the United Nations Economic and Social Council as a Non-Governmental Organisation with Consultative Status. In 1994, the Society celebrated its centenary. 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations assists the General Assembly in promoting international economic and social cooperation and development. ... A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an organization which is not a part of a government. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ...

Recently, the Society has campaigned successfully for the introduction of STV for local elections in Scotland. Motto (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity Cha togar mfhearg gun dioladh (Scottish Gaelic)1 Wha daur meddle wi me?(Scots)1 Anthem (Multiple unofficial anthems) Scotlands location in Europe Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official languages English, Gaelic Government Constitutional monarchy  -  Queen Queen Elizabeth II  -  Prime...

1. ^ (Sinnott, Richard, 1999. ‘The electoral system’, pp. 99–126 in John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 3rd ed. London: Routledge and PSAI Press.)

Related Organisations

The Society has three closely related organisations:

• Electoral Reform Services (ERS, formerly Electoral Reform Ballot Services): A company established in 1988 to provide an independent balloting and polling service to organisations conducting elections and polls. The service is widely used by trade unions, political parties, building societies and companies when balloting their members or shareholders. In many cases these organisations are forbidden from conducting their ballots internally to ensure that the ballots are conducted impartially.

• Electoral Reform International Services (ERIS): A company established in 1991 to provide assistance in conducting elections worldwide. Activities include advice, training and election monitoring.

• The McDougall Trust: A registered charity which promotes the understanding of electoral issues.

A trade union or labor union is a continuous association of wage-earners for the purpose of maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment. ... A political party is a political organization subscribing to a certain ideology or formed around very special issues. ... Building society was the name given in 19th century Britain for working mens co_operative savings groups: by pooling savings, members could buy or build their own homes. ...

Counting rules

• How to Count an Election by The Single Transferable Vote

How to Count an Election by The Single Transferable Vote is a book first published by the Electoral Reform Society (ERS) by Robert A. Newland and Frank S. Britton in 1973. ...

External links

• Official website
• Electoral Reform Services
• Electoral Reform International Services
• Make Votes Count coalition, of which the ERS is a founder member
• Article on the ERS from the Electoral Reform Wiki City
• Articles and Memorandum of Association of the ERS from an unofficial site.