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Political parties and local government

Lessons 39–41 · 3 lessons · L. Jurayev, M. Abdullayeva, H. Tuhtarova, S. Khan, L. Tsoy, K. Inogamova, L. Matskevich, R. Ziryanova. Fly High English 9 (English, Grade 9), revised and expanded 2nd edition. “Yangiyo‘l Poligraf Servis”, Tashkent, 2014
39

Political parties in Uzbekistan and Great Britain

Textbook: p. 61
GoalPolitical parties and electoral systems: general election, MP, first-past-the-post, proportional representation; comparing figures (greater / fewer than).
New words
general election · umumiy saylovMember of Parliament (MP) · parlament a’zosicandidate · nomzodproportional representation · proporsional vakillik
Explanation

A political party is a group of people with similar views who try to get representatives elected to power. In the United Kingdom citizens aged 18 and over vote in a general election at least every five years. In each constituency the candidate with the most votes becomes the MP, even if the winner is just one vote ahead of the runner-up: this is the first-past-the-post system. It usually makes two big parties (Labour and Conservative) strong. In a system of proportional representation the number of seats matches the percentage of votes won across the country. Uzbekistan also has a multi-party system, and citizens may vote from the age of 18. Comparing figures: Party A won more seats than Party B. Party C won fewer seats than Party B. The number of Party C MPs is smaller / lower than the number of Party A MPs. (We say fewer with plural nouns: fewer seats; with “the number” we say smaller or lower.)

Worked examples
In a sample election Party A won 40% of the votes and Party B won 35%. The percentage of Party A votes is higher than the percentage of Party B votes, but Party B might have more MPs if it wins more constituencies.
Small parties often get many votes but few seats under first-past-the-post. That is why they ask for proportional representation.
Class activity

“Mini-election”: the class votes for three imaginary parties; results are counted in two ways (winner in each group / overall percentage) and compared.

Practice
1
From what age can people vote in the UK?
2
Compare: 44% of votes, 63% of MPs. Which is greater, the percentage of votes or of MPs?
3
What is first-past-the-post?
4
Why do small parties prefer proportional representation?