Question

2a Read and answer the questions.

1 What is the difference between the British and Uzbekistan electoral systems?
2 What is similar?

Every five years, British people over the age of 18 can vote in a general election. People vote for the candidate they want in their region. The candidate who wins becomes their MP (Member of Parliament) in the House of Commons, even if he or she gets only one vote more than the candidate who is second. This is called the first-past-the-post system. The first-past-the-post electoral system in Britain usually makes two parties powerful, while smaller parties do not have many MPs. Since the 1920s, the two main parties have been the left-wing Labour Party and the right-wing Conservative Party. The Liberal Democratic party is not happy with the first-past-the-post electoral system. This is because it is a party which does not win many seats in Parliament, but comes second in many regions. It would prefer a system of proportional representation where the number of MPs is based on the number of people who vote for the party in the whole of the country.​

Answer 1

1. In Uzbekistan the Parliament has 150 members in the Legislative Chamber, elected for a five-year terms and 100 members in the Senate. 84 members are elected at the sessions of district, regional and city deputies, and 16 members are appointed by the president.

In Great Britain the candidate who wins becomes the Member of Parliament in the House of Commons, even if he or she gets only one vote more than the candidate who is second. The electoral system in Britain usually makes two parties powerful, while smaller parties do not have many MPs.

2. In Uzbekistan as well as in Great Britain people over the age of 18 can vote in a general election.