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Learn about the first past the post voting system and how it is used to elect members of the UK Parliament and local councillors in England.

MPs are elected to the House of Commons using a system called First Past the Post.

On your ballot paper, you’ll see a list of names and political parties – these are your candidates. You’ll be asked to mark ‘X’ next to one choice.  
The candidate with the most votes is elected and becomes your Member of Parliament.

There are 650 constituencies across the UK so there are 650 MPs.  
MPs are normally elected every five years but by-elections can take place at any time.

Most candidates will be standing for a political party. Candidates who are not linked to a party are known as independent candidates.

The political party with most MPs elected across the whole of the UK wins the election and becomes the UK Government. They are known as the majority party, meaning they have the largest number of MPs.

Remember, you don’t vote for the Prime Minister. Instead, members of each political party elect their own leader. If their party wins the majority, their leader becomes Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister chooses who takes other senior positions in UK Government, such as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary.

Learn about the first past the post voting system and how it is used to elect members of the UK Parliament.

MPs are elected to the House of Commons using a system called First Past the Post.

On your ballot paper, you’ll see a list of names and political parties – these are your candidates. You’ll be asked to mark ‘X’ next to one choice.

The candidate with the most votes is elected and becomes your Member of Parliament.

There are 650 constituencies across the UK so there are 650 MPs. 
MPs are normally elected every five years but by-elections can take place at any time.

Most candidates will be standing for a political party. Candidates who are not linked to a party are known as independent candidates.

The political party with most MPs elected across the whole of the UK wins the election and becomes the UK Government. They are known as the majority party, meaning they have the largest number of MPs.

Remember, you don’t vote for the Prime Minister. Instead, members of each political party elect their own leader. If their party wins the majority, their leader becomes Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister chooses who takes other senior positions in UK Government, such as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary.

Learn about the first past the post voting system and how it is used to elect members of the UK Parliament in Wales.

MPs are elected to the House of Commons using a system called First Past the Post.

On your ballot paper, you’ll see a list of names and political parties – these are your candidates. You’ll be asked to mark ‘X’ next to one choice.

The candidate with the most votes is elected and becomes your Member of Parliament.

There are 650 constituencies across the UK so there are 650 MPs.

MPs are normally elected every five years but by-elections can take place at any time.

Most candidates will be standing for a political party. Candidates who are not linked to a party are known as independent candidates.

The political party with most MPs elected across the whole of the UK wins the election and becomes the UK Government. They are known as the majority party, meaning they have the largest number of MPs.

Remember, you don’t vote for the Prime Minister. Instead, members of each political party elect their own leader. If their party wins the majority, their leader becomes Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister chooses who takes other senior positions in UK Government, such as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary.

Learn about the first past the post voting system and how it is used to elect members of the UK Parliament.

MPs are elected to the House of Commons using a system called First Past the Post.

On your ballot paper, you’ll see a list of names and political parties – these are your candidates. You’ll be asked to mark ‘X’ next to one choice.

The candidate with the most votes is elected and becomes your Member of Parliament.

There are 650 constituencies across the UK so there are 650 MPs.

MPs are normally elected every five years but by-elections can take place at any time.

Most candidates will be standing for a political party. Candidates who are not linked to a party are known as independent candidates.

The political party with most MPs elected across the whole of the UK wins the election and becomes the UK Government. They are known as the majority party, meaning they have the largest number of MPs.

Some MPs in Northern Ireland choose not to take their seats in the UK Parliament, in a practise known as abstentionism.

Remember, you don’t vote for the Prime Minister. Instead, members of each political party elect their own leader. If their party wins the majority, their leader becomes Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister chooses who takes other senior positions in UK Government, such as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary.

What is First Past the Post anyway?

A video by young people at the Democracy Box, our youth voice partner for Wales, 2023.

Visit the Democracy Box’s website.

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