Make My Vote Count

The campaign for voter choice and a more representative parliament

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Write to Your PR-elected Politician

Courtesy of writetothem.com, there is now a quick, no-hassle way of contacting one or more of the politicians in your area who have been elected by a form of proportional representation.  It shouldn't take more than 5 minutes to email them and get your point across that voters' experiences of all elections matter.

Step 1 Go to the website www.writetothem.com (opens in new window)

Step 2 Find out who your MEP / Assembly Member / MSP is, by typing your postcode into the box on screen.

Whereever you live, you'll have Members of the European Parliament representating your region. Scots will also have Members of the Scottish Parliament (both at a constituency level and regionally), and also now local councillors elected by forms of PR.  If you live in Wales, you'll have Welsh Assembly Members representing you, again both at a constituency level and regionally.  And Londoners will have Assembly Members elected both at a constituency level and London-wide. 

Step 3 Choose an MEP / Assembly Member / MSP's from the names displayed, then click on that name, which will then take you through to a screen where you can write your message.

Step 4 Type your message. Some suggested text and points to make are below. You can just copy that straight into your email. But it is much more effective if you are able to personalise it in some way: whether by putting things into your own words, adding some extra points, or at least putting a personal message at the beginning. For further ideas you can read a short briefing on the review here, and a slightly more detailed version compiled by Electoral Reform Society here.

Step 5 Preview your message and if you are happy with it, press send. That's it.

Alternatively, if you want to send a letter instead, write to them via:

MSP - c/o The Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh EH99 1SP
AM - c/o National Assembly for Wales, Cardiff Bay, Cardiff           CF99 1NA
London AM - c/o GLA, City Hall, The Queen's Walk, London           SE1 2AA
MEP - contact addresses via this website

And please forward any response you get to us, as it is valuable for us to know what politicians are saying.

What you might say to your AM / MSP / MEP: 

  • Voting matters and so should voters’ experiences of elections and perceptions of whether their vote counts.

  • The British Government needs to go beyond the desk-based review of electoral systems that it has recently published.  Democracy isn't deskbound.

  • The debate should be opened up to the public.  There needs to be a meaningful public consultation process on elections, including looking at the way we elect MPs.

  • That, even if the system isn't perfect, you value the principles behind the system by which that politician got elected: namely increased voter choice, an elected body which more accurately reflects the views of the electorate, and the feeling that your vote counts.

  • Whatever their own views on electoral reform (for their own elections and for the Commons), they should recognise it shouldn’t just be up to parties and politicians who have a vested interest in the status quo to determine whether there is a case for change. Voters need to be involved in making that decision, as well as having the final say on which system to implement.

  • Ask them write to the leader of their party to encourage them to take these points on board and push for a debate on voters' experiences of elections.

Some additional points you might consider adding:

  • With many other aspects of an MP's employment conditions - like pay rises and expenses claims - now coming under close scrutiny, one powerful way for MPs to restore public faith is to hand over control of the very system that gets them elected and gives many of them jobs for life.

  • The Commons is the primary chamber.   So to wait until Lords reform has been finalised before turning their attention to the Commons, as the Government is proposing, seems the wrong way round.  The debate on what's the best way to elect MPs should start as soon as possible, rather than be determined by what voting system is chosen for the Upper House.

  • There are inevitably discussions about what might happen in the event of a hung parliament.  But voting reform should not be seen as a deal done behind closed doors or for partisan gain.  In order to keep all options open, the debate within parties and with the public needs to begin now, before an election.