21 C. Proportional representation (PR) systems

Rule: seats are allocated in proportion to votes, in multi-member districts (or one national district) — parties present lists (closed — party fixes order; open — voters shape it). • Examples: Netherlands (single national district, near-perfect proportionality), South Africa, Sweden; STV (single transferable vote) in Ireland/Malta (voter-ranked PR without party lists). • Mechanical elements: district magnitude (more seats per district = more proportional) and thresholds (a minimum vote share — e.g., Germany 5%, Turkey 10% — to exclude fragmentation; Turkey's shows thresholds' authoritarian potential). • Merits: fairness — seats mirror votes; every vote counts (few wasted votes); minorities and small parties represented; higher women's representation (lists can be zipped/quotad); coalition politics encourages consensus. • Demerits: coalition instability; weak individual MP–voter link; party bosses control closed lists; fragmentation giving kingmaker power to fringe parties; complexity of counting and of governance.