The Handbook of Electoral System Choice [Hardcover]

The topic of electoral reform is an extremely timely one. The accelerated expansion of the number of new democracies in the world generates increasing demand for advice on the choice of electoral rules; at the same time, a new reformism in well established democracies seeks new formulae favouring both more representative institutions and more accountable rulers. The Handbook of Electoral System Choice addresses the theoretical and comparative issues of electoral reform in relation to democratization, political strategies in established democracies and the relative performance of different electoral systems. Case studies on virtually every major democracy or democratizing country in the world are included.Foreword; B.Grofman INTRODUCTION The Strategy and History of Electoral System Choice; J.M.Colomer THE AMERICAS The Americas: General Overview; J.M.Colomer Argentina: Compromising on a Qualified-Plurality System; G.L.Negretto Brazil: Democratizing with Majority-Runoff; J.M.Nicolau Costa Rica: Modifying Majoritarianism with 40 Percent Threshold; F.Lehoucq Mexico: Designing Electoral Rules by a Dominant Party; A.Diaz-Cayeros & B.Magaloni United States: The Past: Moving from Diversity to Unified Single Member Districts; E.Engstrom United States: The Future: Reconsidering Single-Member Districts and the Electoral College; R.L.Engstrom WESTERN EUROPE Western Europe: General Overview; J.M.Colomer France: Reform-mongering Between Majority-Runoff and Proportionality; G.Alexander Germany: Partisan Engineering of Personalized Proportional Representation; M.Kreuzer Italy: Lofty Ambitions and Unintended Consequences; D.Gambetta & S.Warner Spain: From Civil War to Proportional Representation; J.M.Colomer Sweden: Introducing Proportional Representation From Above; L.Lewin Switzerland: Introducing Proportional Representation From Below; G.Lutz United Kingdom: Reforming the Westminster Model; P.Dunleavy & H.Margetts EASTERN EUROPE Eastern Europe: General Overview; C.Florlc"