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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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two-party system
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The arrangement that has prevailed from the start of British democracy. Deriving from the original emergence of two parties, the *Tories and Whigs, it has been perpetuated by the electoral system known as 'first past the post', in which a candidate is elected for a parliamentary constituency if he or she gets even a single vote more than the nearest rival. All the votes cast for other candidates are in effect wasted, and a party coming second in many seats can be almost unrepresented in the House of Commons (see the *Alliance and the *SNP for examples). This has led in recent years to increasing pressure for proportional representation. The two-party system is reflected in the rectangular shape of the chamber in the House of Commons, with one side for each party.
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