Referendum- who is ahead in the polls?

With one more day to go. Use therse resources to track who is ahead in the polls.
the UK Polling report is an excellent site for aggregating recent results.

some academic political blogs which are discussing the issue include:
The LSE British Politics and Policy Blog According to the most recent post from Robin Archer (comoparing the situation with Australia) AV may bring unexpected benefits.
David Hugh-Jones' blog a postdoctoral researcher ar the University of Warwick has some AV simulations on his blog
Alan Renwick from the University of Reading has produced a briefing paper for the Political Studies Association.

The Nottingham University blog ballots and Bullets also has some discussion.

Introduction to politics blog at Warwick also has a posting

AV - referendum who stands where

Here are some quick links to think tanks and organsiations both for and against. Most have news and reports on their website.

Yes Vote
Yes to AV - formed from the original make my vote count campaign.
Take back Parliament - campaign group
Unlock Democracy - incorporates materials from Charter 88
Electoral Reform Society Long term campaign group. Website has numerous briefings and reports.
Compass - associated with the left recently published a pamphlet Democracy by Machines or Morals?
Operation Black Vote campaign group

Negative aspects of AV
Centre for Policy Studies Evaporating Case for Electoral Reform
GMB union - truth about AV
Other papers assessing the possible changes include.
British Academy report: 'Choosing an Electoral System':prepared by Professor Simon Hix, Professor Ron Johnston FBA and Professor Iain McLean FBA with research assistance from Angela Cummine
Constitution society briefing paper
Hansard society has some archived articles.

AV Referendum : news sites

Of course most newspapers have special coverage of the issues. Here are some recommended resources

BBC has good coverage of the position of the different parties. plus a special section with news and views You can also see video coverage from BBC programmes such as the daily politics.
The Guardian (which broadly supports AV) has a special feature.
It alos has video content of key speeches and an interactive guide which explains how AV works
Independent coverage

AV Referendum 6th May - starting points see Victor the Vote Counter and More!

While this isnt an election as it is a major referendum and will effect future voting patterns. This blog will be presenting a toolkit of useful sites over the next few days. Here are some basic starting points. Use these tro find out what is going to happen in the referendum and the nature of the changes proposed.

About My Vote is a public site maintained by the UK Electoral Commission. It provides information on the issues and how to vote. See Victor the Vote Counter for an explanation of different votong systems.

AV and electoral reform- this This report from the House of Commons Library gives in depth analysis of the proposed AV electoral system, its history in the UK, and an examination of its advantages and disadvantages. It also includes notes on the Regulation of holding a referendum in the Uk and existing voting systems in the UK You might also for background information like to look at the Jenkins report 1997 which reviewed electoral systems for the government. It constains in-depth analysis of different alternatives and recommended a form of AV


the main campaign sites are No to AV
yes to fairer Votes
Both have blogs, discussion forums and online campaign materials.

Should we reform the electoral system?

One of the issues relating to a hung parliament is the question of whether the electoral system should be reformed.
Here are some starting points for considering the impact of different voting systems on election outcomes.
The main organisation calling for change in the UK is the Electoral Reform Society. It includes a large collection of online pamphlets and reports However, do remember that the ERS favours the adoption of single transferable voting.

More balanced Summaries of the the Independent Commission on the Voting System
and other Uk government reviews can be found in House of Commons Library publications. see this example from 1998 and search the site for others.
For a broader overview of the types of electoral system available, an excellent resource is the ACE electoral knowledge networkwhich has involvement from a number of leading organisations. It includes an encyclopedia of terminology, electoral laws and resources.
Another excellent resource is International Idea's Handbook of electoral system design Which examines different systems and their consequences.
In 2006, The Minority Rights Group also published a pamphlet on Electoral systems and the protection and participation of minorities which you might find useful.
Finally a resource (in favour of PR ) where you can find articles and papers supporting Proportional representation is the US based PR Library