Preferential and non-preferred vote

In democratic systems, citizens exercise the right to vote and decide who will be their political representatives. Each country has its own electoral system.

However, there are two procedures basic: choose a series of preferred candidates that appear on an electoral list or choose a ballot in which there is a complete list of candidates. In the first case it is the preferential vote or open list system and in the second it is the non-preferential vote or closed list system.

Advantages of the preferential vote

Those who defend this procedure consider that it has three main advantages:

1) Citizens elect their representatives directly (for example, by putting a cross in the preferred candidate box),

2) this model is considered more democratic, participatory and direct, since the citizen decide who you want to represent you and

3) Closed lists are negative as an election system, since they imply that the citizen does not reward the one he considers the best candidate, but rather a group of people imposed by a political party.

On synthesis, in the preferential vote the choice of the citizen has a greater role.

It should be noted that in this procedure the parties have previously chosen a list of possible candidates (for example, ten) and the citizens have to choose a total of candidates (for example, five), so it would be possible to vote for three candidates from a list and two of other.

Advantages of non-preferential voting

Not surprisingly, supporters of this model argue that closed lists have their advantages:

1) With this procedure, the ideas and proposals of a party are valued more than people and, therefore, the non-preferred or closed list is a brake against possible personalities and populisms,

2) the democracy is based on the participation political parties and they must propose their candidates and

3) is a simpler system in the voting process and in the vote count.

In short, in the non-preferential vote, the political parties have great power over the electorate.

The voting system in Spain is preferential for Congress and not preferential for the Senate

As established in the Constitution In Spain, in the elections to the national parliament, citizens elect the members of the Chamber of Congress through a closed list proposed by the political parties. On the other hand, citizens directly elect members of the Senate from an open list.

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