Why the British public doesn’t choose its leader | Interpreter

Britain is divided into 650 local constituencies and people tick a box for the representative they want to become their local MP or MP. The party that wins the majority of the seats is allowed to form a government and the leader of that party automatically becomes prime minister.

Since 1922, all 20 Prime Ministers of Great Britain have come from either the Labor Party or the Conservative Party. (Image: AP)

By Associated Press: Observers of Britain’s government structure will be forgiven for scratching their heads in recent weeks as they watch the country sweep through a succession of prime ministers without holding elections. As the opposition Labor Party demands elections, the ruling Conservatives continue to elect another prime minister from among their own ranks, which they have a right to do because of the way Britain’s parliamentary democracy works.

BRITISH NEVER ACTUALLY VOTE FOR THEIR FIRST MINISTER

Britain is divided into 650 local constituencies and people tick a box for the representative they want to become their local MP or MP. In most cases, this will be a member of one of the country’s largest political parties.

The party that wins the majority of the seats is allowed to form a government and the leader of that party automatically becomes prime minister. While coalitions are possible, the UK voting system favors the two largest parties and in most cases a single party will win the absolute majority of seats, as is the case for the Conservatives in the current parliament.

HOW DO THE PARTIES CHOOSE THEIR LEADERS?

Since 1922, all 20 Prime Ministers of Great Britain have come from either the Labor Party or the Conservative Party. This means that the members of these parties have an excessive influence on who becomes the prime minister of the country. The processes the parties use to choose them may seem Byzantine.

Take a deep breath: For the Conservative Party, their lawmakers must first declare their support for a potential leader. If there is sufficient support, this person becomes an official candidate. All Conservative MPs then cast a series of votes, gradually reducing the number of candidates to two. Finally, the party’s regular members – about 180,000 of them – vote between these two candidates. Last time they chose Liz Truss over Rishi Sunak.

If the MPs can rally behind one candidate, the wider party members don’t have to vote. This last happened in 2016 when lawmakers backed Theresa May after David Cameron stepped down and she automatically became prime minister. This could happen again.

The PvdA has its own process that is arguably even more complicated.

BUT DON’T BRITINS VOTE BORIS JOHNSON IN 2019?

Johnson was elected by his party after the resignation of Theresa May. He had been prime minister for five months when voters tapped their ballots in December 2019. However, voter support for the Conservative Party cemented his position as prime minister.

But even in those elections, it was really only about 70,000 people who got the chance to vote directly for or against Johnson – those who happened to live in his parliamentary constituency of South Ruislip and Uxbridge in west London.

Since then, another prime minister, Liz Truss, has come and gone, and there will be another one by the end of next week — all without anyone bothering the general electorate.

WILL THERE BE A GENERAL ELECTION SOON?

Constitutionally, there is no need for a general election in Britain for another two years. But as the prime ministers come and go, selected by a small segment of the population, many Britons are beginning to wonder why they don’t get a chance to influence who their next leader is. The call for general elections in the near future is likely to only get louder.