Hello and welcome.
 
I’m Rohin Vadera, founder of the Veto Campaign.

Our electoral system, and all others, have an existential flaw. None of them safeguard the principle that a government that gets into power must do so with majority consent.

Its stupid not to solve this fundamental issue.

Otherwise, you must defend the untenable position that a minority will reliably serve the best interests of the majority without their support and over their objections. Fix this and everything else will start to fall into place.

The Problem

Currently, we force people who are not guaranteed adequate representation to:

·         cast a hopeless or uncertain ballot.

·         vote for the least bad.

·         vote tactically to keep the worst out of power.

·         abstain.

·         spoil a ballot which will not count and is lumped in with those spoilt in error.

These are all "lead, follow, or get out of the way systems". They lack the crucial fouth option: the ability to withhold consent.

We currently have many MPs elected with few votes in constituencies where turnout is low. Or get councils dominated by minority support parties as the opposition is divided.

By what moral authority do they make decisions that affect us all? Jess Phillips received the second fewest votes, with 11,275 votes from a constituency of over 73,000 and a turnout of less than 50%. She was a minister. She was playing a central role in one of the most important enquiries the UK has ever seen. Plenty more with similar numbers.

It's crazy that people like her have so much influence over our lives.

It's time to change that. 

The Solution

To address this issue,  the principle of majority consent in elections to be upheld by including an option at the top of all ballots for legislative positions that states: "I VETO this election." This will serve as the formal mechanism to ensure majority voter consent.

This option is suitable for all electoral systems. Its effect is logically determined by the system within which it operates

Unless you can say "no," you cannot say "yes."

We dont want to go too much into the weeds in describing how it works. That is for legislation to deal with. Its the principle of majority consent must become a non-negotiable baseline and the electoral system best suitable to express that principle is what we are looking to achieve. Voters come first.

The concept of what will happen is illustrated below.

In FPTP, if a majority choose to veto in a constituency we have reruns until a minority don't veto. If a majority don't veto its a de facto ranked ballot. 

In PR systems, the proportion of vetos results in the same proportion of empty seats for the duration of the parliament. If a majority of seats are unoccupied there is a national rerun.

The effect of the veto is to create incentives to minimise its use. The less the veto is used, the more likely it is that the common good will be maximised.

Why It Works

Democracy should work; we live with the consequences of our decisions, so we have the greatest incentive to achieve effective governance. Currently, we are just fuel for the election system, not its owners, and the results are predictable. 

Imagine the impact:

Better policies for you: politicians will scramble to fix failing issues like the cost-of-living crisis, immigration, NHS wait times, or housing shortages to avoid vetoes.

Real voter power: Even before a majority veto, it highlights where dissatisfaction is highest, pushing for change nationwide. It provides a reliable measure of public dissatisfaction, which is essential feedback for consistent, effective governance.

We don't have a democratic electoral system. It's really an electoral oligarchy, where the least unpopular, at that moment, become our rulers, rather than our representatives. 

Thank you for reading.

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Recent elections have shown there is a record low trust; therefore, this veto could transform UK politics by making it work for the people instead of the parties.

Visit the website to find out more: www.vetocampaign.com.

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