The first-past-the-post voting refers to an election won by the candidate(s) with the most votes. The winning candidate does not necessarily receive an absolute majority of all votes cast.
First past the post, like other plurality majority electoral systems, is defended primarily on the grounds of simplicity and its tendency to produce representatives beholder to defined geographic areas. This type of electoral system provides a clear cut choice for voters between two parties. It gives rise to single party government and councils. It gives rise to coherent parliamentary opposition. It benefits broadly based political parties. In severely ethnically or regionally divided societies this system is praised for encouraging political parties to be ‘broad churches’ encompassing many elements of society, particularly when there are only two major parties and many different societal groups. These parties can the...