Katherine Rodriguez AP Government British Electoral Rules Compared to United States Electoral Rules The British system of elections

is a parliamentary system. As a matter of fact, the British Parliament at Westminster is called the Mother of Parliaments. Like the American system there are two houses. Their difference is that of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The House of Commons is the critical player in the British electoral system. Each Member of Parliament represents his local constituency. These constituencies are established to ensure equitable representation in Parliament. Voters in Britain vote for their member of parliament. They do not vote specifically for the Prime Minister. In the Presidential system of the US the President is both the head of state and the head of government. He is elected, indirectly through the Electoral College but this is far more directly than in the British system. The American system and the British system do have one significant factor in common. In both, the results are calculated as winner take all or first past the post. The British and U.S. models have resulted conversely in traditionally two party systems.

France compared to USA.

Because France uses a run off system, multiple parties can run candidates without the fear that a divided field will inherently favor even any unpopular incumbent. Theres less worry that simply having more parties running on one side of the political spectrum will inherently cost them the election. France doesnt have multiple viable political parties simply because the French people have greater diversity of views, any more than most Americans are simply happy with just two parties. France has more parties because they have election laws that allow for a diversity of choices to have a chance of winning. In contrast, in America the Democrats and Republicans have worked together to write our election laws to try to prevent any other political parties from competing against them. Walker, John. The French Election and Why America Doesnt Have More Parties. N.p.: FDL, 2012. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://elections.firedoglake.com/2012/04/17/the-french-election-andwhy-america-doesnt-have-more-parties/>.

The process of electing candidates at the state level is done in three steps. They are the Primaries and Caucuses, National Conventions and General (or Popular) Election. The delegates are chosen at local caucuses and later narrowed at district conventions. The candidates of the two major parties are finalized only at the state conventions. The delegates representing each state go to national conventions which is is the final step. At the national conventions, the respective parties officially announce their candidates and the process of general election begins.

Katherine Rodriguez AP Government

N.p.: Online Educational Resource Collection, Comparison of US Presidential election between Indias Lok sabha electionWeb. 25 Jan. 2013. http://www.eduresourcecollection.com/projects_lelection.php

Mexicos electoral rules compared to the United States.

The Mexican electoral system is much fairer, professional, independent and non-partisan than the U.S. system. Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) is a nonpartisan, professional institution in which political party representatives have access but no control. IFE manages a nation-wide system with uniform rules. IFE actively registers about 95% of 77 million eligible voters and gives each a biometric, photo ID card, which Mexicans use as a primary identification. The registration list is audited regularly, and the photos of the voters are on the list in each polling site. Each of Mexico's main political parties receives approximately $24 million of public financing for a three-month campaign. They can also receive 10% of their funds from supporters, but no one can give more than $71,000. IFE pays for media advertising, and makes sure that the candidates have equal access. IFE also tries to discourage any negative advertising. Since its revolution, Mexico's constitution prohibits re-election in order to prevent responsibility from using government to manipulate the electoral process. IFE goes even further by trying to prevent the president from even campaigning in the most indirect way for his party's candidates. A way we can see that Mexico has commitment is that Mexico's IFE spends roughly 10 times more per capita than the United States to manage a state-of-the-art electoral process.
Mascari, Nick. MEXICO'S ELECTORAL SYSTEM BETTER THAN AMERICA'S. N.p.: Breibart, 2012. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2012/07/14/voter-id-mexicos-system-better-than-americas>.

The U.S. could and should establish an independent national nonpartisan event, election, organization or person in which there is no formally declared association with political affiliation, election with a national biometric ID, a single national registration list, restrictions list, restrictions

Katherine Rodriguez AP Government

on private funding, public financing for short campaigns, poll workers that are recruited by lot and well trained, disincentives for negative advertising, independent electoral courts, and international and domestic observers.
Heuvel, Katrina. America

Needs Electoral Reform. N.p.: The Nation, 2008. Web. 25 Jan. 2013.

<http://www.thenation.com/article/america-needs-electoral-reform#>.

U.S. states and communities passively register about 55% of eligible voters, and the lists are flawed with many duplicates and errors, especially between states and counties. Each state has different rules, and in states where Republicans have a majority, their focus on preventing electoral fraud has led them to restrict registration and require IDs, while Democrats are more concerned about voters' access and believe the Republican ID laws are aimed to suppress voter turnout from poor people or minorities.
Suggestions for reforms of U.S. Electoral rules

1. Nonpartisan election administration. The United States has 13,000 counties and municipalities that manage our national elections with different rules and less capacity. Partisan officials generally control the process, and in a close election, the opposition is often suspicious of the result. 2. Registration and identification of voters. The IFE actively registers about 95% of 77 million eligible voters and gives each a biometric, photo ID card, which Mexicans use as a primary identification. The registration list is audited regularly, and the photos of the voters are on the list in each polling site. Its a technique that the United States should follow. 3. Poll workers. U.S. election officials were asked about the criteria for choosing poll workers, election officials said: "I'll take anyone with a pulse." Most poll workers are very senior citizens without the kind of stamina necessary to manage a polling station for 12 hours, and in most cases, they are poorly trained as compared to other countries counterparts. 4. Equitable access to the media/negative advertising. A substantial amount of the $6 billion raised by the candidates in the United States goes for media advertising, and a recent study showed that 70 percent of ads in this years presidential contest have been negative. Therefore the media should be limited more. 5. Observers. Having observers from different countries can give advice to the United States.

Katherine Rodriguez AP Government

6. Judging disputes The United States has few laws and no court with the expertise to settle such disputes.

Pastor, Robert A. 8 things the U.S. election system could learn from Mexico's. N.p.: CNN, 2012. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/2012/07/02/8-things-the-u-selection-system-could-learn-from-mexicos/>.

Turnout rate
Country
United States Mexico Germany Honduras France Egypt Brazil Russian Federation Canada El Salvador Italy United Kingdom Spain Japan India Pakistan
Source: International IDEA

Year
2010 2012 2009 2009 2010 2012 2012 2012 2011 2009 2008 2010 2011 2009 2009 2008

Turnout Rate
41.59% 62.45% 70.78% 50.05% 59.98% 62.04% 81.88% 65.27% 61.41% 70.78% 80.54% 65.77% 68.94% 69.27% 58.19& 44.55%

Brazil, France, Indonesia, Poland, Russia, Malaysia, and the Philippines have been using the electronic ID and will be used by everyone that will replace conventional identity cards. With the issuance of these cards, these nations will be able to streamline voter registration.

Katherine Rodriguez AP Government

King, Charles. Electoral System. N.p.: Georgetown Univeristy, 2000. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/kingch/Electoral_Systems.htm>.

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