New Zealand 2011

[redcommander]

After recount, National wins back Waitakere with a 9 vote majority. Christchurch Central is still a National win with a 47 vote majority.

This would be good news if they didn't lose a list seat.

[Nichlemn]

I'm not sure if it's a good thing for a party to win electorate seats (unless the party is under 5% or will get an overhang). One way in which is it is undisputedly bad is that a resigning Electorate MP necessitates a by-election which the party might lose, whereas a resigning List MP is guaranteed a replacement from the next in line. On the other hand, there might be intangible benefits to having an Electorate MP - perhaps they can produce "reverse coattail" effects by giving their party additional votes. Seems like a good project for a statistically minded person.

[redcommander]

I'm not sure if it's a good thing for a party to win electorate seats (unless the party is under 5% or will get an overhang). One way in which is it is undisputedly bad is that a resigning Electorate MP necessitates a by-election which the party might lose, whereas a resigning List MP is guaranteed a replacement from the next in line. On the other hand, there might be intangible benefits to having an Electorate MP - perhaps they can produce "reverse coattail" effects by giving their party additional votes. Seems like a good project for a statistically minded person.

I'm a little unfamiliar with your electoral system. So you're saying that if a by-election results with the opposite party winning, one of the list MPs is lost from the opposite party and given to the previous MP's party so that no one can gain or lose seats on the basis of a by-election alone?

[minionofmidas]

By-elections in an MPP system are ridiculous. (If NZ is like Scotland, then no. The party can lose a seat through a by-election.)

[Teddy (IDS Legislator)]

Parallel systems are far better IMO

[Nichlemn]

Split-voting and votes by polling booth now available. I did a bunch of PVI calculations by polling booth for a lot of electorates last time and hope to do so again. Unfortunately, especially in Christchurch a lot of polling booths have changed so it's kind of hard to compare results.

[lilTommy]

Am i reading this right... the Labour party membership didn't vote but only MPs did for the Labour leadership?
Strikes me as odd, from a canadian perspective, since as a NewDemocrat i have another couple months till i vote and every member gets to vote for only the leader (would be nice to choose the deputies). Or the Liberals who i believe will have a delegated convention to choose their leader but still it means hundreds of votes instead of 34 voters for the NZL?

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/comment/columnists/vernon-small/6117264/Labour-leadership-race-goes-to-the-wire

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Labour_Party_leadership_election,_2011

[You kip if you want to...]

Am i reading this right... the Labour party membership didn't vote but only MPs did for the Labour leadership?
Strikes me as odd, from a canadian perspective, since as a NewDemocrat i have another couple months till i vote and every member gets to vote for only the leader (would be nice to choose the deputies). Or the Liberals who i believe will have a delegated convention to choose their leader but still it means hundreds of votes instead of 34 voters for the NZL?

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/comment/columnists/vernon-small/6117264/Labour-leadership-race-goes-to-the-wire

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Labour_Party_leadership_election,_2011

Australia does the same...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

It was also how things were done in Britain until recently; the Labour leadership was entirely determined by the PLP until the early 1980s (this rule change was actually one of the main reasons for the bulk of the Manifesto Group leaving the Party to form the SDP), and Tory members had no say in the election of their leader until 2001... but then even Tory MPs didn't until 1965! The Liberals, hilariously, kept leadership elections to MPs only until the 1970s.

[Leftbehind]

(this rule change was actually one of the main reasons for the bulk of the Manifesto Group leaving the Party to form the SDP)

That and the other reasons make me happy. Just a shame they couldn't stomach having a left-wing leader for once, and had to throw their toys out of their collective pram.

[Хahar 🤔]

Wasn't Macmillan chosen by the Queen?