Voting systems in the UK

Until 1997 nearly all elections in Great Britain used the first-past-the-post (FPTP) voting system. Local and devolved elections in Northern Ireland used the single transferable vote (STV) system from the 1970s. University seats in the House of Commons also used STV from 1918 until their abolition in 1950.

Since 1997 several different voting systems have been introduced for different elections across the country. The types of electoral system currently used in the UK are summarised in the table below. Explanations of how the systems work are included in the full briefing.

2011 referendum

In 2011 the UK held a referendum on replacing FPTP for elections to the House of Commons.

The referendum question was “At present, the UK uses the ‘first past the post’ system to elect MPs to the House of Commons. Should the ‘alternative vote’ system be used instead?” AV is not a proportional system.

Turnout was 42.2% and the result was:

• Yes – 6,152,607 (32.1%)
• No – 13,013,123 (67.9%)

A national commission on electoral reform

The Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has announced plans to establish a commission to examine electoral reform. He made the announcement at the Labour Party’s annual conference in September 2026. In his speech he said:

…today I am announcing a new national commission on electoral reform. I  invite all the political parties to be part of its work. We will contest the next election with a manifesto commitment to change the electoral system so that everyone’s vote counts and everyone’s voice is heard.

During the Makerfield by-election in May 2026, where Andy Burnham was the Labour candidate, he said reform of the electoral system was needed.

Details of the commission are yet to emerge.

Why is electoral reform being talked about?

Talk about electoral reform has increased since the 2024 general election, which was the was the most disproportionate on record. The gap between vote share and seat share in 2024 saw Labour win 63% of the seats in the House of Commons with a vote share of 34%. Reform UK won 1% of the seats on a 14% vote share.

Previous reports

This briefing sets out the pros and cons of different systems and highlights some previous reports on electoral reform in the UK. Any analysis of electoral systems is quick to point out that there is no perfect system, and each system has strengths and weaknesses.

Any choice of involves trade-offs between the competing priorities that different people place on what an electoral system should deliver. These include:

• Proportionality
• A constituency link
• Simple to understand
• Outcomes and accountability
• Voter choice
• Party versus individual candidate behaviour