Proportional Representation

Proportional representation is an electoral system in which seats are allocated in proportion to the vote share of political parties, with advantages of reflecting diverse opinions and reducing wasted

Proportional Representation

Overview

Proportional representation (Korean: 비례대표제; Hanja: 比例代表制) is an electoral system in which seats are allocated in proportion to the share of votes each party receives in an election. While majoritarian systems tend toward "winner-takes-all," proportional representation aims to facilitate the entry of minority parties into parliament and to reflect the diverse political opinions of the public. In particular, its key feature is minimizing "wasted votes" by reducing the gap between a party's vote share and its seat share.

Main Content

Basic Principles

Proportional representation allocates seats in proportion to the number of votes a party receives. For example, a party that obtains 20% of the total valid votes will hold about 20% of the total seats. To this end, each party submits a list of candidates (party list) before the election, and voters vote for a party. Because the vote is cast for a party rather than an individual candidate, it tends to strengthen party-centered politics.

Types and Methods

Proportional representation is broadly divided into party-list PR and the single transferable vote (STV).

  • Party-list PR: Voters vote for a party; each party receives seats according to its vote share and determines winners according to the order of the list submitted in advance. Depending on whether the list is closed or open, voters may influence the selection of candidates.
  • Single transferable vote (STV): Voters rank candidates, candidates who reach a certain quota are elected, and surplus votes are transferred to other candidates. Under a multi-party system, it can maintain proportionality while also preserving constituency representation.
  • Mixed systems: Methods that combine constituency elections with proportional representation elections, such as Germany's mixed-member proportional (MMP) system and South Korea's parallel voting and semi-mixed-member proportional systems. In MMP, constituency seat allocation results are compensated to increase overall proportionality, whereas in parallel voting the results of the two tiers are allocated separately.

Advantages and Disadvantages

The advantages of proportional representation are as follows.

  • It can reflect the diverse political opinions of the public.
  • Wasted votes are reduced, increasing the utility of each vote.
  • It can improve the representation of minority parties, women, and minorities.
  • It promotes policy-oriented political competition.

On the other hand, there are also disadvantages.

  • Party power is strengthened, which may weaken the qualifications of individual candidates or regional representation.
  • Coalition governments become more frequent, potentially making politics unstable.
  • Extreme minority parties may enter parliament and encourage extremism.
  • Internal conflicts may arise over party list rankings.

Examples of Major Countries

Germany is a representative country using the mixed-member proportional representation system, in which constituency seats and proportional seats are linked to emphasize overall proportionality. New Zealand also adopted the mixed-member proportional (MMP) system in 1996, leading to the rise of smaller parties and the activation of coalition politics. The Netherlands and Israel use party-list proportional representation in a single nationwide constituency, resulting in very high seat allocation proportionality. Ireland's lower house and Australia's upper house (Senate) partially use the single transferable vote.

Proportional Representation in South Korea

South Korea introduced proportional representation starting with the 6th National Assembly election in 1963. Currently, National Assembly elections are divided into constituency seats (253) and proportional seats (47), and a "semi-mixed-member proportional" system has been applied since the 21st general election in 2020. The semi-MMP system links constituency and proportional seats to allocate seats close to each party's vote share, but it has become controversial due to tricks exploiting blind spots in the system, such as the creation of "satellite parties." Accordingly, debates over electoral reform continue in the political community.

Latest Trends

Ahead of the 22nd general election in 2024, discussions on reforming proportional representation were actively held in South Korea. In 2023, the National Election Commission put forward civil society agenda items that included regional proportional representation, open primaries, and banning satellite parties. However, in February 2024, the National Assembly passed an amendment to the Public Official Election Act that maintained the existing semi-mixed-member proportional system while increasing proportional seats from 47 to 50. In the April 2024 general election, the pan-opposition bloc led by the Democratic Party established the proportional satellite party "Democratic Alliance of Korea" (더불어민주연합), and the People Power Party established "People's Future" (국민의미래), each taking proportional seats. The emergence of these satellite parties exposed institutional loopholes again, and experts have increasingly called for fundamentally strengthening the linked system or adopting a German-style MMP system. As of 2025, reform bills have been proposed by each party, but they have not passed due to differences between the ruling and opposition parties. Major points of contention include expanding the number of seats, regional proportional representation, and the democratic nature of party-list nomination processes. In addition, introducing mandatory quota systems for proportional lists to increase the representation of young people and women is also being discussed.

Related Topics

  • [[Electoral system]]
  • [[Majority representation]]
  • [[Semi-mixed-member proportional representation]]
  • [[Satellite party]]
  • [[Mixed electoral system]]