Arend Lijphart leads a team of political scientists in a study of the electoral system in 27 democracies between 1945 and 1990, The group analyzes some 70 electoral systems as used by these countries and classifies them by means of comparative and statistical analysis. The group reports its findings in the book Electoral Systems and Party Systems and concludes that these various systems are not as complex or as diverse as is usually believed.
The group sets out its goals and methods clearly in the first chapter. The electoral system is said to be "the most fundamental element of representative democracy" (1) because the most necessary task in a representative democracy is achieved by the electoral system, defined as "the set of methods for translating the citizens' votes into representatives' seats" (1). This opening chapter is especially important in that the methodology provided enables the reader better to judge the data gathered and the conclusions drawn from that data in the rest of the book. The author states in the opening that certain choices have been made as to the type of system to study and the specific systems to be included in the selected category. Lijphart first notes that he will place his emphasis on those electoral systems found in the most successful democracies, meaning the European democracies that have been in place for a long time. He will also place an emphasis on what he says are the three most basic properties of these democracies: 1) the electoral formula by which representation is decided; 2) the district magnitude, meaning the number of representatives elected per district; and 3) the electoral threshold, or the minimum support needed by a political party to gain representation.
The analysis covers electoral systems in 27 democracies, as noted, 24 of which represent the world's most durable democracies. Lijphart adds Spain, Portugal, and Greece to his analysis, though they do not qualify ...