Electoral systems in Southasia

Electoral systems in Southasia

As Afghanistan’s election result hangs in the balance, a look at the electoral systems in the region.
Flickr / helmandprt
Flickr / helmandprt

All the nation states of Southasia make claims of being democracies, but this description merely affirms the fact that all nine of them hold elections of some kind. The practice of democracy itself varies widely, however, as it is determined, in the first instance, by the individual electoral systems. The electoral laws followed by each country lead to wildly different forms of representational politics. The rubric of 'democracy' often disguises how different they may be as the bustle of politics and the noise of politicians diverts attention away from the processes by which they come to power. In the absence of further information – the electoral procedures and the nature of the legislative (or executive) structures they create – that description is not just incomplete; it is misleading.

As Afghanistan struggles to define its electoral mandate for the country's next President, Himal Southasian presents a quick study of Southasian elections in an effort to draw attention to the wide range of practices in the region. The front-runner of the first round of polling, Abdullah Abdullah, who was far behind Ashraf Ghani in preliminary results, has rejected the UN-supervised audit of elections, adding that "he was and is the winner of the election based upon clean votes." This brings to mind the 2013 Maldivian presidential election that was considered to have been stolen from under the nose of former President Nasheed.

The absolute majority achieved by Bharatiya Janata Party in the Indian Parliament disguises the fact that the party got only 31 percent of the popular vote in the recent elections demonstrating that the number of parliamentary seats does not always reflect the vote share of the parties. India continues to follow the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system that is increasingly seen as being less democratic than alternatives like proportional representation (PR) or mixed proportional representation that Nepal, for example, adopted for its Constituent Assembly. Yet the limitations of this system are seen clearly in the case of Sri Lanka, where a Parliament elected through mixed proportional system is constricted by the authoritarian powers of a directly elected President.

In Bangladesh and Pakistan, the state is unable to convince many of the validity of its elections. Bhutan has received accolades for moving to electoral democracy, but still curtails adequate representation by limiting the number of parties in the contest through a complex mechanism.

An informed understanding of Southasian electoral systems is essential to gauge the quality of our democracies, their successes and failures in representing those that they claim to. If you have more information or analysis to offer, do write to us at editorial@himalmag.com as we continue to build on this initial compilation.

Afghanistan
Afghanistan has a bicameral National Assembly (Jirga) consisting of the House of Elders (Meshrano Jirga) and the House of People (Wolesi Jirga). The lower house Wolesi Jirga seats 249 members elected, through the single non-transferable vote (SNTV) system combined with a multi-seat single constituency, a peculiar amalgamation of two different systems that prevents political consolidation of their mandate by parties. The highest polling candidates (given by the number of seats in the constituency) are elected for a five-year term. These members come from 35 multi-member constituencies, including a Kuchi (nomad) constituency which elects 10 members through a Single National Constituency. Also, the house reserves 64 seats for women.

It is a perplexing system followed only in Vanuatu, the Pitcairn Islands and Jordan for electing the members of lower house, and seems to have been designed with a view to enhance the Presidency and ensure political fragmentation of the Parliament. As it is individuals and not parties that are competing in the elections, it ultimately results in a fractious house that encourages further consolidation of presidential power.

The upper house has a mixture of 102 elected and appointed members. One-third of them are elected by district councils (one per province) for a term of three years and another third by provincial councils (one per province) for a term of four years. The rest of the members are appointed by the President to serve a five-year term. Of this, two members must be differently abled, two from nomads and half of all appointed members have to be women

Afghanistan also elects its President through a popular election. The President is elected after receiving more than 50 percent of votes cast by voters through direct voting. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the votes in the first round, the two candidates with the highest number of votes contest for the second round of voting. Below are the results of the first round of 2014 elections.

Candidate

Votes

Vote share

Abdullah Abdullah

2,972,141

45.00

Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai

2,084,547

31.56

Zalmai Rassoul

750,997

11.37

Others

796,861

12.07

Since no candidates secured the necessary 50 percent of votes, there was a second round of elections held on 14 June. However, due to allegations of widespread vote fraud, the ballots were audited UN supervision. The audit was completed on 5 September, but Abdullah Abdullah has already dismissed its results.

Bangladesh
Bangladesh has a unicameral Parliament known as the House of the Nation seating 350 members. Of these, 300 members are directly elected from single-member constituencies through the FPTP system. The remaining 50 seats are reserved for women who are elected by the member of the house. This is done on the basis of proportional representation (PR) through single transferable vote (STV) in which the voter ranks candidates preferentially, and votes are reallocated from ballots whose first rankings are eliminated, shifting to the next-ranked candidates on those ballots.

Below are the results from the parliamentary elections of January 2014.

Party

Seats won

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

Awami League

233

83.81

36,173,883

79.14

National Party

34

12.23

5,167,698

11.31

Workers Party of Bangladesh

6

2.16

939,581

2.06

National Socialist Party

5

1.80

798,644

1.75

Bhutan
Bhutan has a bicameral Parliament (Chi Tshong) consisting of Druk Gyalpo (King of Bhutan), the National Council (Gyelyong Tshogde) and the National Assembly (Gyelyong Tshogdu). The lower house Gyelyong Tshogdu directly elects 55 members from territorial constituencies that are allocated seats in proportion to their population. Bhutan follows the FPTP system of elections that occur in two rounds. All potential parties contest the first round, and the two political parties with the greatest number of votes get to contest the second round. Also, these parties must have 47 candidates ready for an election – one in each constituency – which makes it extremely difficult for political formations to be built. In effect, this allows the lower house to accomodate only two parties.

The upper house seats a mixture of 25 elected and nominated members, one elected member from each of the 20 districts (dzongkhags) and five members nominated by the King. Candidates running for it must not be affiliated with political parties. All candidates in this election run as independents competing in Bhutan's twenty districts. Six of these members are women.

Below are the results of the May-June 2013 lower house elections.

Party

Seats Won

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

People's Democratic Party

32

68.09

138,760

54.88

Druk Phuensum Tshogpa

15

31.91

114,093

45.12

Burma
Burma has a bicameral People's Assembly (Pyidaungsu Hluttaw) consisting of the House of Nationalities (Amyotha Hluttaw) and the House of Representatives (Pyithu Hluttaw). The lower house, Pyithu Hluttaw seats 440 members, 330 of whom are elected through FPTP in single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms, and 110 of whom are appointed by the military to serve four-year terms.

The upper house consists of 224 members, 168 of whom are elected through absolute majority in single-member constituencies, and 56 of whom are appointed by the military.

Below are the results for the 2010 elections for the House of Representatives.

Party

Seats Won

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

National Unity Party

12

2.76

4,060,802

19.44

Shan National Democratic Party

18

4.14

508,780

2.44

Union Solidarity and Development Party

259

59.54

11,858,125

56.76

Others

41

8.28

4,465,000

21.36

Armed Forces Seats

110

25.29

India
India has a bicameral Parliament of the Union (Sansad) consisting the House of People (Lok Sabha) and the Council of States (Rajya Sabha). The lower house Lok Sabha seats 545 members, 543 of whom are elected through FPTP in single-member constituencies to serve five-year terms, and two of whom are appointed by the President.

The upper house Rajya Sabha can seat 250 members, 238 of whom are indirectly elected by the state's legislatures to serve six-year terms, 12 members are appointed by the President to serve six-year terms and the remaining members are chosen by elected members of the state and territorial assemblies.

Below are the results from the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. These results clearly show the limitations of a FPTP system, especially in a country with such a large and diverse electoral base. Much has been made of the absolute majority of the BJP in the elections. This, despite the fact that almost 70 percent of the popular vote went to parties other than the BJP.

Party

Seats

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

Bharatiya Janata Party

282

51.93

171,657,549

31.00

Indian National Congress

44

8.10

106,938,242

19.31

Others

217

39.96

275,206,010

49.69

The Maldives
The Maldives has a unicameral People's Council (Majlis) consisting of 85 members who are elected to serve five-year terms. Maldives follows the FPTP system of elections and members are elected from single-member constituencies.

Below are the results from the 2014 parliamentary elections.

Party

Seats Won

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

Maldivian Democratic Party

26

30.59

75,670

40.79

Progressive Party of Maldives

33

38.82

51,424

27.72

Jumhooree Party

15

17.65

25,149

13.56

Others

11

12.94

33,262

17.93

The Maldives elects its President by absolute majority vote through a two-round system to serve a five-year term. Below are the results from the two rounds of presidential elections in 2013. The results also reflect the tenuous nature of popular mandate in Southasian democracies. In the first round of elections that was domestically and internationally lauded for its fairness and transparency, Mohamed Nasheed won a clear majority. He fell short of getting 50 percent of the votes required for an all out win. However, the second round of elections saw a consolidation of votes around Abdulla Yameen, who managed to increase his vote share by over 20 percent and was declared the new President.

Round One:

Candidate

Votes

Vote share

Mohamed Nasheed

96,747

46.93

Abdulla Yameen

61,295

29.73

Qasim Ibrahim

48,131

23.34

Round Two:

Candidate

Votes

Vote share

Abdulla Yameen

111,203

51.39

Mohamed Nasheed

105,181

48.61

Nepal
Nepal has a unicameral Constituent Assembly (Sambidhan Sabha) that consists of 601 members, 240 of whom are elected through a direct, constituency-based FPTP contests, and 335 are elected through party list-based PR system. The remaining 26 members are nominated by the interim cabinet on a consensual basis. The Constituent Assembly (CA) has provisions in which women must make up at least half of the PR list. Overall, 33 percent of all the candidate for the CA must be women. Other PR quotas include 31.2 percent for Madhesis, 37.8 percent for the Janajatis (indigenous groups), 13 percent for Dalits, 4 percent for inhabitants of underdeveloped regions and 30.2 percent for others not mentioned elsewhere in the list.

Below are the results from the CA elections held in November 2013.

Party

Seats won

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

Nepali Congress

196

32.61

5,113,290

27.62

Communist Party of Nepal
(Unified Marxist-Leninist)

175

29.12

4,731,699

25.56

Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist)

80

13.31

3,048,871

16.47

Others

124

20.63

5,614,940

30.35

Pakistan
Pakistan has a bicameral Parliament (Majlis-e-Shoora) consisting of the National Assembly and the Senate (or the Provincial Assembly). The lower house National Assembly seats 342 members of which 272 are elected through FPTP in single-member constituencies. 60 seats are reserved for women and 10 for non-Muslims. These 70 members are elected through PR. All members of the National Assembly are elected for a five-year term.

The upper house, or the Senate, seats 104 members from 68 constituencies, 14 of whom are elected by the Provincial Assembly, eight of whom are elected from Federally Administered Tribal Areas, two from the Federal Capital such that there is one woman and one technocrat, and 12 of whom are women elected by the members of the Provincial Assembly (including four technocrats and four non-Muslims).

Below are the results of the May 2013 parliamentary elections.

Party

Seats Won

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

Pakistan Muslim League

167

48.83

14,874,104

32.77

Movement for Justice

35

10.23

7,679,954

16.92

Pakistan People's Party

39

11.40

6,911,218

15.23

Other parties

41

11.98

5,780,486

35.08

Women and non-Muslims

70

20.46

Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka has a unicameral Parliament consisting of 225 members, 196 of whom are elected from 22 multi-member constituencies, and 29 of whom are elected from one nationwide constituency. It consists of 140 Constituency Members, 70 District Members and 15 National List Members of Parliament elected for a six-year term. Sri Lanka follows an open list PR system in which each voter may cast three preference votes in a multi-member constituency. In this two-round contingent vote system, ballots whose first rankings are eliminated are redistributed to the next-ranked candidates if no candidate wins a majority in the first round of counting.

Below are the results from the April 2010 parliamentary elections.

Party

Seats Won

Seat share

Votes

Vote share

United People's Freedom Alliance

144

64

4,846,388

61.36

United National Party

60

26.67

2,357,057

29.84

Others

21

9.33

694,725

8.80

Sri Lanka also elects its President through popular elections. In cases where there are three candidates, voters specify their second preference and in cases where there are more than three candidates, they specify their second and third preferences. Below are the results from the 2010 presidential election.

Candidate

Votes

Percentage of Votes

Mahinda Rajapaksa

6,015,934

57.88

Sarath Fonseka

4,173,185

40.15

Others

204,494

1.97

~Research by Kamakshi Kanojia.

Loading content, please wait...
Himal Southasian
www.himalmag.com