HOW OPEN LIST PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION WORKS IN THE 2020 LOCAL ELECTIONS AT KHARKIV REGION?

DOI: https://doi.org/10.26565/2220-8089-2020-38-17
Keywords: local elections, electoral system, open lists, preference vote, electoral quota, district lists, allocation of seats

Abstract

The article examines the first approbation of the Electoral Code on the material of the 2020 local elections in the Kharkiv region. The authors pay special attention to the effects of open lists systems and the degree of influence of preferential votes on the personal distribution of seats in local councils. The article calculates the percentage of voters who used the right of preferential votes in all 14 constituencies and main party lists. We argue that according to the indicators of the use of the preferential vote right and the percentage of invalid ballots, the voters of the Kharkiv region demonstrated a high degree of adaptive readiness for the new electoral system.

The article analyzes the effects of blocking mechanisms incorporated in the electoral system, which reduced the influence of preferential votes of voters and retained the control of the party leadership over the personal distribution of mandates in the councils. The ratio between the seats from the district lists and the unified closed party lists was quantified (based on election results for the regional council and 17 city councils of the region). The article analyzes the intensity of changes in the ballot position of candidates in the district lists on regional council elections. We demonstrate that only 20% of seats were received by candidates placed by the party leadership in a “no-pass” ballot position. The article argues that the electoral formula introduced in the 2020 local elections did not work as a system with open lists proportional representation. According to the statistics of the personal allocation of seats in the newly elected councils, this model seems to be something in between the systems of flexible and closed lists. In this regard, the article develops new arguments in the debate on how the norms of electoral legislation reduce the role of preferential votes of voters and proposes recommendations for amending the Electoral Code.

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Author Biographies

О. А. Фісун, V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, 4, Svoboda Sq., Kharkiv, 61022, Ukraine

Head of Department of Political Science.

А. О. Авксентьєв, V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, 4, Svoboda Sq., Kharkiv, 61022, Ukraine

Assistant professor, Ph.D in Political Science.

References

ЛІТЕРАТУРА

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Фісун, Олександр. 2016. “Неформальні інститути та неопатримоніальна демократія в Україні”, Агора. Вип.17: 9-13. URL: https://academia.edu/30425284/Неформальні_інститути_та_неопатримоніальна_демократія_в_Україні_Informal_Institutions_and_Ukraine_s_Neopatrimonial_Democracy_

REFERENCES

Gendźwiłł, Adam & Raciborski, Jacek. 2014. “Jak głosują wyborcy w warunkach preferencyjnych list wyborczych: przypadek Polski (How Do Voters Use Preferential Vote in Semi-Open PR System – The Case Of Poland),” Decyzje. 22: 47-69 (in Polish).

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Däubler, Thomas. 2020. “Do More Flexible Lists Increase the Take-up of Preference Voting?” Electoral Studies. 68 (December): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2020.102232

Folke, Olle, Persson, Torsten & Ricne, Johanna. 2016. “The Primary Effect: Preference Votes and Political Promotions,” American Political Science Review. 110(3): 559-578.

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Boyko, Nazar. 2020. “Naskilʹky vidkrytymy vyyavylysya “vidkryti spysky”? (How open were the "open lists"?)”. Vox Ukraine. 2 December. URL: https://voxukraine.org/naskilki-vidkritimi-viyavilis-vidkriti-spiski/ (in Ukrainian).

Masterman, C.J. 1964. “The Effect of the “Donkey Voting” on the House of Representatives,” Australian Journal of Politics and History. X(2): 221-225.

Faas, Thorsten & Schoen, Harald. 2006. “The Importance of Being First: Effects of Candidates' List Positions in the 2003 Bavarian State Election,” Electoral Studies. 25(1): 91-102.

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Published
2021-03-05
How to Cite
Фісун, О. А., & Авксентьєв, А. О. (2021). HOW OPEN LIST PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION WORKS IN THE 2020 LOCAL ELECTIONS AT KHARKIV REGION?. The Journal of V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University. Issues of Political Science, 38, 139-147. https://doi.org/10.26565/2220-8089-2020-38-17
Issue
Vol. 38 (2020): Issues of Political Science
Section
DISCUSSION FORUM

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