First Past the Post: Holding the United States Back
The Case for a Two Round Election System,
and the rise of the American Third Party
The United States presidential system is the crown jewel of America’s political identity and one of our most cherished institutions. Because of this, we as Americans are extremely reluctant to revise our system, however badly it may need it. In recent years, the weaknesses of the United States’ First Past the Post election system have been exposed, even highlighted, by the election of plurality presidents in two of the last three general elections. This is a large problem for the functioning of the government, not only is the plurality president often ineffective because of lacking congressional majorities; he also lacks the mandate of the people, decreasing the legitimacy of his government.
First Past the Post is an inherently flawed election system because it is a zero sum game. The winning candidate wins absolutely, and his absolute victory is counter-balanced by the absolute loss by the other candidates. This often leads to plurality presidents when more than two candidates are involved in the election. It also ensures that the (often significant) portion of voters that did not vote for the winning candidate are entirely unrepresented by the president elect. First Past the Post works best in a strictly two party system, with two candidates, ensuring that someone will receive a majority. In fact, French political scientist Maurice Duverger argues that a First Past the Post election system naturally leads to a two party structure [i]. Duverger’s argument has clear examples in the United States’ electoral past. In the 1836 presidential election, Martin Van Buren, the Democratic Party’s candidate, won 50.83% of the popular vote, and was elected to the presidency. He was opposed by three candidates: William Harrison (36.63%), Hugh White (9.72%), and Daniel Webster (2.74%), all of the Whig party. It appears that the Democrats handily defeated the opposition (a 14.2% lead over the next closest vote getter). However, upon closer examination, had all of the Whigs consolidated their votes, they would have commanded 49.09% of the vote, leaving the Democrats with a razor thin 1.74% margin of victory. In the following election, in 1840, the Whigs all campaigned behind a single candidate, William Harrison, and garnered 52.88% of the vote, compared with Van Buren’s 46.81%. The Whigs learned an important lesson in consolidating for victory, an example that has been followed by many contemporary political groups that compete in First Past the Post systems. Just as the similar Whig candidates consolidated to achieve victory, smaller political parties are forced to conglomerate to form a larger contingent that can garner an electoral majority. In fact, the 1840 election was the last time in United States history that an election would be (seriously) split between more than two candidates [ii].
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