• Stanbic boosts green economyMay 12, 2025
    As Stanbic, GIZ strategically collaborate GIZ PDP blueprint to strengthen market development Stanbic upbeat, keen on greening of the economy Combating Climate Change core focus BAKANG TIRO editors@thepatriot.co.bw RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE… Read more: Stanbic boosts green economy
  • Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and SolidarityMay 12, 2025
    PETRA PETEYRA The EU Ambassador to Botswana, SADC RelatedPosts Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and Solidarity BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution The Papacy is not a United Nations seat or a World Cup final!   Thank you… Read more: Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and Solidarity
  • BDP ‘rapes’ ConstitutionMay 12, 2025
    Congress reduced to election of new leadership only Constitution dictates that Congress receives reports, resolves on motions The outgoing Central Committee acted beyond its mandate – Analyst DITIRO MOTLHABANE & BAKANG TIRO RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy Europe Day… Read more: BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution
  • STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATUREMay 7, 2025
    DR ITUMELENG SEITSHIRO  TECHNICAL ASSISTANT TO THE EXECUTIVE HEAD OF PROJECTS – DEBSWANA  RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATURE Modernising the exchange LAGAGO TAMOCHA  “BE yourself; everyone else is already taken” by Oscar Wilde is… Read more: STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATURE
  • Modernising the exchangeMay 7, 2025
    MASEGO PHETO-LENTSWE  HEAD, CLEARING AND SETTLEMENT  RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATURE Modernising the exchange BOTSWANA STOCK EXCHANGE  MASEGO Pheto-Lentswe has built a strong reputation in banking, risk management, and capital markets. With nearly three… Read more: Modernising the exchange
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport
  • Analysis & Opinions
  • Vacancies & Tenders
  • Login
  • Register
Monday, May 12, 2025
17 °c
Gaborone
21 ° Tue
22 ° Wed
24 ° Thu
26 ° Fri
The Patriot On Sunday
Advertisement
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport
  • Analysis & Opinions
  • Vacancies & Tenders
No Result
View All Result
Cart / $0.00

No products in the cart.

  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport
  • Analysis & Opinions
  • Vacancies & Tenders
No Result
View All Result
The Patriot On Sunday
No Result
View All Result
Home News

The folly of Winner takes All (FPTP) system

patriot by patriot
January 16, 2021
in News
250
0
491
SHARES
1.4k
VIEWS
ShareShareShare

Contrary to widespread misconception that the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) was returned to power through a landslide victory last week, statistics reveal that the party only made marginal increase from the 2014 gains. A dictionary definition of the idiom  ‘landslide victory’ means a victory by a large margin; a very substantial victory, particularly in an election.

The BDP was returned to power by 342 658 votes, an increase of just 22, 001 from the 320 657 recorded in 2014, thus gaining only one extra seat for Member of Parliament (MP) to make the current 38. Proportionately this figure represent 66.7 percent of the total number of seats in the August house, a slight increase from the 64.9 percent in 2014 (which made 37 MP seats). In the process, the BDP popular vote only increased from 46.5 percent in 2014 to 48.7 percent in 2019, a marginal increase of just 2.2 percent which notably remains below half (50%) the number of votes cast. However, this is a reversal of a trend where the BDP popular vote has been dropping steadily from 80 percent in 1965 to just 46.5 percent in 2014.

RelatedPosts

Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and Solidarity

BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution

The Papacy is not a United Nations seat or a World Cup final!

Numerous scholars among them Professors Maundeni, Sebudubudu and Osei-Hwedie concur that successive electoral victories by the BDP have given rise to the view that while the country operates in a multi-party framework, it is a de-facto one dominant-party system. Contributing a chapter on The Political Party System: Explaining the Predominance of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), in a book titled “Botswana’s Parliamentary Democracy Revisited”, High Court judge Dr Zein Kebonang and Limkokwing university Vice Chancellor Dr Gape Kaboyakgosi, also conclude that the BDP’s electoral performance is enhanced by the way in which the electoral system used in Botswana is configured. The First Past The Post (FPTP) electoral system that has been the basis of electoral contest in Botswana since 1965, has over represented the BDP and under represented the opposition in Parliament, experts have observed.

First Past The Post (FPTP) provides that victorious candidates need only obtain a simple majority.

Electoral system

Whereas opposition parties have consistently improved their popular vote, this has not necessarily translated into the same proportion of parliamentary representation. A good example is the rise in popular vote of the Botswana National Front (BNF) from 14% in 1969 to reach an all time high of 37% in 1994 before dropping after the 1998 split to 25% in 1999. Interestingly, the newly formed breakaway Botswana Congress Party BCP) garnered 11% at their first polls in 1999 rising to 19% in 2009 and reaching an all time high of 20% in 2014. In both cases the rise in popular vote did not amount to much because they could not make an outright majority. With particular reference to 2014, the combined popular vote for the three party alliance Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), BCP and other opposition parties collectively makes 53%.

Inversely, despite decline in popular support from an overwhelming 80% share of the popular vote during the first elections in 1965 to 65% in 1989, and the party eventually dropping to just 47% in the 2014 general elections, the BDP retains an imposing majority in Parliament.

A calculation of the total popular vote amassed by the three opposition parties which contested the 2019 elections against the BDP, being the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC),  Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF) and the Alliance for Progressives (AP) shows that they only managed 46.8 percent. These exclude the BMD and independent candidates. The UDC is leading the pack in the opposition crowd after increasing their popular vote from 30 percent garnered in 2014 to the current 35.1 percent. Corresponding to this 5.1 percent jump in popular vote is an increase in the number of votes cast for UDC from 207 113 in 2014 to the current 247 107,  an increase of 39, 994 votes.

According to the latest IEC statistic, therefore, criticism levelled against tactics employed by the leader of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), Duma Boko, which many cite as the main reason the oposition coalition failed to take power in last week polls, are unfounded. In fact, although they did not topple the BDP as intended, the UDC performed much better than before. Ironically the increase in votes, reaching almost 40 000 does not translate into an increase in Parliamentary seats for the UDC. This can be explained by the arrival of BPF and AP in the opposition block, who ate away a chunk of votes that would have naturally gone to enhance the UDC performance.

Voter apathy

Perhaps to his credit, former President Ian Khama, remains the only Head of State under whose stewardship voter turnout in Botswana surpassed the 80% mark reaching 84.60 percent at the 2014 general elections, which were won by the BDP. From the 825 582 registered to vote in 2014, a whooping 698 409 cast their vote, by far the biggest turnout ever in the history of Botswana.

 The total 691, 920 votes cast in 2019 represent only 72.6 percent of the total 925 478 registered to vote, meaning that 253, 558 registered voters did not turn up at the polling stations or did not cast their vote for some other reason. From the 12 polls conducted in Botswana since 1965, the 2019 voter turnout is the 5th lowest while the smallest number of voters was recorded in 1974 (31.22%), a year of debilitating drought that had catastrophic consequences on subsistence farmers.

Related

Tags: BDP

Get real time update about this post categories directly on your device, subscribe now.

Unsubscribe
Previous Post

Constituency leagues kill sports associations

Next Post

B-FAR congratulates Masisi

Related Posts

Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and Solidarity
News

Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and Solidarity

May 12, 2025
BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution
News

BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution

May 12, 2025
The Papacy is not a United Nations seat or a World Cup final!
News

The Papacy is not a United Nations seat or a World Cup final!

May 5, 2025
Molome takes charge
News

Molome takes charge

May 5, 2025
Khama hurts UDC
News

Khama hurts UDC

May 5, 2025
Rigging fears rock BDP
News

Rigging fears rock BDP

May 7, 2025
Next Post
B-FAR congratulates Masisi

B-FAR congratulates Masisi

Please login to join discussion
  • Stanbic boosts green economyMay 12, 2025
    As Stanbic, GIZ strategically collaborate GIZ PDP blueprint to strengthen market development Stanbic upbeat, keen on greening of the economy Combating Climate Change core focus BAKANG TIRO editors@thepatriot.co.bw RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE… Read more: Stanbic boosts green economy
  • Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and SolidarityMay 12, 2025
    PETRA PETEYRA The EU Ambassador to Botswana, SADC RelatedPosts Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and Solidarity BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution The Papacy is not a United Nations seat or a World Cup final!   Thank you… Read more: Europe Day 2025 – Celebrating 75 Years of Unity and Solidarity
  • BDP ‘rapes’ ConstitutionMay 12, 2025
    Congress reduced to election of new leadership only Constitution dictates that Congress receives reports, resolves on motions The outgoing Central Committee acted beyond its mandate – Analyst DITIRO MOTLHABANE & BAKANG TIRO RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy Europe Day… Read more: BDP ‘rapes’ Constitution
  • STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATUREMay 7, 2025
    DR ITUMELENG SEITSHIRO  TECHNICAL ASSISTANT TO THE EXECUTIVE HEAD OF PROJECTS – DEBSWANA  RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATURE Modernising the exchange LAGAGO TAMOCHA  “BE yourself; everyone else is already taken” by Oscar Wilde is… Read more: STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATURE
  • Modernising the exchangeMay 7, 2025
    MASEGO PHETO-LENTSWE  HEAD, CLEARING AND SETTLEMENT  RelatedPosts Stanbic boosts green economy STRONG, FOCUSED FORCE OF NATURE Modernising the exchange BOTSWANA STOCK EXCHANGE  MASEGO Pheto-Lentswe has built a strong reputation in banking, risk management, and capital markets. With nearly three… Read more: Modernising the exchange
The Patriot On Sunday

© 2024 Copyright The Patriot On Sunday - Inspired by Search Mart.

Navigate Site

  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Disclaimer
  • Contact Us

Follow Us

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • Cart
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport
  • Analysis & Opinions
  • Vacancies & Tenders

© 2024 Copyright The Patriot On Sunday - Inspired by Search Mart.

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
Are you sure want to unlock this post?
Unlock left : 0
Are you sure want to cancel subscription?