The choice argument for proportional representation
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11065062 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Adam Lovett (0000-0001-8728-5624, School of Philosophy Australian Catholic University Fitzroy Victoria Australia, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Publication date | 2025-04-21 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | American Journal of Political Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0092-5853 • E-ISSN: 1540-5907 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/ajps.12980 |
| OpenAlex | W4409647703 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 42 |
What electoral system should a democracy choose? I argue for proportional representation (PR). My main empirical premise is Duverger's law: Under PR there are more viable candidates in district‐level elections than there are under single‐member plurality (SMP) systems. My main normative premise is that democracy is valuable because it enables ordinary citizens to rule themselves. To enjoy the value of self‐rule, citizens must be able to make an autonomous vote choice. Yet, how autonomous any choice is depends on the diversity of one's adequate options. The fewer adequate options one can choose between, the less autonomous is one's choice. So PR augments self‐rule by increasing the diversity of acceptable options citizens have at election time
Argument (complex analysis · Econometrics · Political science · Proportional representation · Representation (politics · Computer Science · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Game Theory and Voting Systems · Internal Medicine · Law · Mathematics · Medicine · Political Philosophy and Ethics · Psychology
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| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |