A winner-take-all electoral system is one where a voting bloc can win all seats in a legislature or electoral district, denying representation to any political minorities. Such systems are used in many major democracies. Such systems are sometimes called "majoritarian representation", though this term is a misnomer, as most such systems do not always elect majority preferred candidates and do not always produce winners who received majority of votes cast in the district, and they allow parties to take a majority of seats in the chamber with just a minority of the vote.
Any election with only a single seat is a winner-take-all system (as it is impossible for the winner to take less than one seat). As a result, legislatures elected by single-member districts are often described as using "winner-take-all". However, winner-take-all systems do not necessarily mean the majority of voters are represented properly. A minority of voters across the country may take all the seats; a minority of votes cast in a district may elect all the winners in a district. Conversely, a party with just a sliver of votes in a country-wide sense may have local dominance and take a seat in a particular constituency.
Formally, a voting system is called winner-take-all if a majority of voters, by coordinating, can force all seats up for election in their district, denying representation to all minorities. By definition, all single-winner voting systems are winner-take-all. For multi-winner elections, the electorate can be divided into constituencies, such as single-member districts (SMDs), or the election can be held using block voting with at-large or multi-member districts.
Majoritarian representation does not mean the party with a plurality or majority always receive a majority of seats, which is not always guaranteed (see hung parliament). Sometimes the party receiving the most votes gets fewer seats than the party with the second most votes (see electoral inversion).
| Party | A | B | C | D | If the assembly were elected using an at-large (nationwide) party-list proportional representation, the number of seats won by each party would correspond to their share of the popular vote. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Popular vote | 44% | 40% | 10% | 6% | |||
| Seats | 44 | 40 | 10 | 6 | |||
| Winner-take-all systems | |||||||
| Electoral system | Party | Seat distribution | Explanation of example | ||||
| A | B | C | D | ||||
| Block voting | 100 | 0 | 0 | 0 | If the whole assembly is elected in a single (nationwide) constituency under party block voting using block FPP, the party with the highest number of votes always can win all the seats, as long as it does not run too many candidates who split the vote. | ||
| Single-member district | 64 | 33 | 0 | 3 | If the assembly is elected in single-member districts using the first-past-the-post (single-member plurality) method, the candidate with the highest number of votes wins (the only) seat in their district. Often, the party with the highest number of votes wins in a landslide as shown here, but electoral inversion is still possible, as well as the case where no party receives an outright majority of seats (called a hung parliament in the UK). | ||
Winner-take-all and proportional systems are the most commonly used voting system worldwide, followed by mixed electoral systems, which usually combine winner-take-all and proportional representation, although there are mixed system that combine two winner-take-all systems as well. Winner-take-all representation is also contrasted with proportional representation, which provides for representation of political minorities according to their share of the popular vote and semi-proportional representation, which inherently provides for some representation of minorities (at least above a certain threshold). Within mixed systems, mixed-member majoritarian representation (also known as parallel voting) provides semi-proportional representation, as opposed to mixed-member proportional systems.
Historically the first multi-winner electoral systems were winner-take-all elections held at-large, or more generally the multiple non-transferable vote.
Until the first half of the 19th century, the classic winner-take-all system of block voting began to be more and more criticized. This introduced in two senses:
The version of block voting using electoral lists instead of individual candidates (general ticket or party block voting) was almost completely replaced by party-list proportional voting systems, which fully abandon the winner-take-all ideal in favor of equal representation. However, with the majority bonus or majority jackpot types of mixed system, this type of winner-take-most system has partially reappeared in certain electoral systems.
Winner-take-all representation using single-winner districts is the most common form of pure winner-take-all systems today, with the most common being single-member plurality (SMP).
However, due to high disproportionalities, it is also considered undemocratic by many. In Europe only Belarus and the United Kingdom use FPTP/SMP to elect the primary (lower) chamber of their legislature and France uses a two-round system (TRS). All other European countries either use proportional representation or use winner-take-all representation as part of a mixed-member winner-take-all system (Andorra, Italy, Hungary, Lithuania, Russia and Ukraine) or a mixed-member proportional system (Germany). However, other European countries also occasionally use winner-take-all systems (apart from single-winner elections, like presidential or mayoral elections) for elections to the secondary chamber (upper house) of their legislature (Poland) and sub-national (local and regional) elections.
Winner-take-all system are much more common outside Europe, particularly in the countries of the former British Empire, like Australia (IRV), Bangladesh, Canada, Egypt, India, Pakistan and the United States (FPTP/SMP).
Nowadays, at-large winner-take-all representation is used for national elections only in the Senate of the Philippines, while it is sometimes still used for local elections organised on non-partisan bases. Residual usage in several multi-member constituencies is reduced to the election of the Electoral college of the President of the United States. Block voting is also used to elect a part of the assemblies in the regional elections in Italy and France.
| Lower (or only) house of legislature chambers | Upper house of legislature chambers (where applicable) | |
|---|---|---|
| width=25% | Single-member constituencies: | Other |
| Multi-member constituencies: | ||
Key:
| Antigua and Barbuda | House of Representatives | 2023 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 17 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| rowspan="2" | Australia and its external territories | House of Representatives | 2022 | single-winner districts | Instant runoff voting (IRV) | 151 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | ||||
| Cocos (Keeling) Islands | 2021 | single-winner districts | Instant runoff voting (IRV) | 7 | electoral districts | |||||||
| Azerbaijan | National Assembly (Milli Mejlis) | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 125 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Bahamas | House of Assembly | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 39 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Bahrain | Council of Representatives | 2018 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 40 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Bangladesh | House of the Nation (Jatiyo Sangshad) | 2018 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 350 (300 directly elected + 50 seats reserved for women) | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Barbados | House of Assembly | 2022 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 30 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Belarus | House of Representatives | 2019 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 110 | electoral districts | Presidential system | Belarus used a two-round system before the 2016 election. | ||||
| Belize | National Assembly | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 31 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| rowspan="2" | Bhutan | National Assembly | 2018 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 47 | ||||||
| National Council | 2018 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 25 (20 directly elected + 5 appointed) | electoral districts | |||||||
| Botswana | National Assembly | 2019 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 63 (57 directly elected + 4 members appointed by the governing party + 2 members ex officio: the President and the Attorney General) | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Brazil | Senate | 2022 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1 or 2 (alternates each election) | Plurality block voting (BV) and First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 81 | States and the Federal district | Presidential system | ||||
| Cameroon | National Assembly | 2020 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-7 | Coexistence+conditional supermixed/hybrid:First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single-member constituencies, party with over 50% of vote gets all seats in multi-member constituencies (party block voting), otherwise highest party gets half, rest distributed by largest remainder (Hare quota) | 180 | electoral districts | |||||
| Canada | House of Commons | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 338 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Central African Republic | National Assembly | 2020 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 140 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Chad | National Assembly | 2011 | block voting via multi-winner districts | ? | Coexistence+conditional supermixed/hybrid:First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) party with over 50% of vote gets all seats in multi-member constituencies (party block voting), otherwise List PR (largest remainder, closed list)[3] | 188 | electoral districts | |||||
| Comoros | Assembly of the Union | 2020 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 33 (24 directly elected + 9 elected by lsland assemblies) | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Republic of the Congo | National Assembly | 2022 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 151 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) | National Assembly | 2021 | block voting via multi-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single-member districts and party block voting (PBV) in multi-member districts | 255 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Cuba | National Assembly of People's Power | 2018 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (Endorsement of selected candidates) | 605 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Czech Republic | Senate | 2022 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 27 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Djibouti | National Assembly | 2023 | mixed-member | 3-28 | Fusion / majority jackpot (MBS): 80% of seats (rounded to the nearest integer) in each constituency are awarded to the party receiving the most votes (party block voting), remaining seats are allocated proportionally to other parties receiving over 10% (closed list, D'Hondt method) | 65 | regions | Presidential system | ||||
| Dominica | House of Assembly | 2022 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 32 (21 directly elected, 9 appointed + Speaker + 1 ex officio) | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Dominican Republic | Senate | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 32 | 31 provinces and the Distrito Nacional | Presidential system | |||||
| Eritrea | never held (postponed since 2001) | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||||
| Eswatini | House of Assembly | 2018 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 70 (59 directly elected) | electoral districts | Absolute monarchy | |||||
| Ethiopia | House of People's Representatives | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 547 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| rowspan="3" | France and its overseas collectivities and territories | National Assembly | 2022 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 577 | electoral districts | Semi-presidential system | ||||
| French Polynesia Assembly | 2023 | mixed-member | 4-17 | Two-round majority bonus system (MBS) in multi-member constituencies | 57 | electoral districts | ||||||
| New Caledonia | 2019 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 54 | ||||||||
| Gabon | National Assembly | 2018 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 143 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Gambia | National Assembly | 2022 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 58 (53 directly elected) | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Ghana | Parliament | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 275 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Grenada | House of Representatives | 2022 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 15 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| rowspan="2" | Haiti | Chamber of Deputies | 2021 | single-winner districts | Modified two-round system (TRS), more than 50% result or more than 25% lead required to win in the first round | 99 | electoral districts | Semi-presidential system | ||||
| Senate | 2021 | single-winner districts | 10 seats up for electionin each general election | Two-round system (TRS) | 30 | Semi-presidential system | ||||||
| India | House of the People (Lok Sabha) | 2024 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 543 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| rowspan="2" | Islamic Republic of Iran | Islamic Consultative Assembly (Majlis) | 2020 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-30 | Modified two-round block voting (BV) in multi-member districts, modified two-round system (TRS) in single-member districts (25% of votes required to win in 1st round in every constituency) | 290 (285 directly elected) | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||
| Assembly of Experts | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-16 | Plurality block voting (BV) | Presidential system | ||||||||
| Jamaica | House of Representatives | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 63 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Kenya | National Assembly | 2022 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 350 (337 directly elected + other seats appointed by parties proportional with seats already won or ex officio) | 290 electoral districts, 47 seats reserved for women, elected from single-member constituencies based on the 47 counties of Kenya | Presidential system | |||||
| Kiribati | House of Assembly | 2020 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-3 | Two-round block voting (BV) in multi-member districts, two-round system (TRS) in single-member districts (50% of votes required to win in 1st round in every constituency) | 46 (44 directly elected + 1 delegate from Banaba Island and 1 ex officio) | electoral districts | |||||
| Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) | Supreme People's Assembly | 2005 | Two-round system (TRS) | 687 | ||||||||
| Laos | National Assembly | 2021 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 5-19 | Plurality block voting (BV) | 164 (149 directly elected) | provinces | |||||
| rowspan="2" | Liberia | House of Representatives | 2017 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 73 | electoral districts | Presidential system | ||||
| Senate | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Presidential system | |||||||||
| Malawi | National Assembly | 2019 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 193 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Malaysia | House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat) | 2022 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 222 | electoral districts within the states and federal territories of Malaysia | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Maldives | People's Majlis | 2019 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 87 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Mali | National Assembly | 2020 | block voting via multi-winner districts | Two-round block voting (BV) in multi-member districts, two-round system (TRS) in single-member districts (50% of votes required to win in 1st round in every constituency) | 147 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Marshall Islands | Legislature | 2019 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-5 | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single-member constituencies (19 seats) and Plurality block voting (BV) in multi-member constituencies (14 seats) | 33 | electoral districts | |||||
| Mauritius | National Assembly | 2019 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 2-3 | Plurality block voting (BV) | 70 (62 directly elected + 8 'best losers' appointed) | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | ||||
| Federated States of Micronesia | Congress | 2023 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 14 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Mongolia | State Great Assembly (Khural) | 2020 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-5 | Two round plurality block voting (BV) candidates have to get at least 28% of the votes in a district to get elected. If there are unfilled seat, a runoff is held with twice the number of candidates as there are unfilled seats[4] | 76 | electoral districts | Semi-presidential system | ||||
| rowspan="2" | Myanmar | House of Representatives (Pyithu Hluttaw) | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 440 (330 directly elected) | electoral districts | |||||
| House of Nationalities (Amyotha Hluttaw) | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 224 (168 directly elected) | electoral districts | |||||||
| rowspan="3" | Realm of New Zealand (overseas territories) | Cook Islands | 2022 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 24 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | ||||
| Niue Assembly | 2023 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1 (local districts), 6 (nationwide constituency) | Parallel voting / superposition:First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) 14 seats + Plurality block voting 6 seats | 20 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Tokelau | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 22 | electoral districts in the 3 villages | |||||||
| rowspan="2" | Nigeria | House of Representatives | 2023 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 360 | electoral districts | Presidential system | ||||
| Senate | 2023 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 109 | 3 electoral districts in each state and one for the Federal Capital Territory | Presidential system | ||||||
| Oman | Consultative Assembly | 2019 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-2 | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single-member districts and Plurality block voting (BV) in two-seat districts | 86 | electoral districts | |||||
| Pakistan | National Assembly | 2018 | single-winner districts | 1 (local districts), 60 (seats reserved for women), 10 (seats reserved for religious minorities) | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) for 272 seats + 70 members appointed by parties proportional with seats already won | 342 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | ||||
| rowspan="2" | Palau | House of Delegates | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 16 | single-member constituencies based | Presidential system | ||||
| Senate | single-winner districts | 13 | Plurality block voting (BV) | 13 | single nationwide constituency | Presidential system | ||||||
| Papua New Guinea | National Parliament | 2022 | single-winner districts | Instant runoff voting (IRV) - modified (at most 3 preferences, two tiers) | 111 | 89 elected from "open" seats and 22 from provincial seats based on the twenty provinces | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Philippines | Senate | 2022 | block voting at-large | 12 (alternating elections) | Plurality block voting (BV) | 24 | single nationwide constituency | Presidential system | ||||
| Poland | Senate | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 100 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | ||||||
| Qatar | Consultative Assembly | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 45 (30 directly elected) | electoral districts | ||||||
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | National Assembly | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 15 (11 directly elected) | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Saint Lucia | House of Assembly | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 17 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | House of Assembly | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 23 (15 directly elected) | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Samoa | Legislative Assembly (Fono) | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 51 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| San Marino | Grand and General Council | 2019 | majority jackpot | 60 | Majority jackpot system (35 seat jackpot) | 60 | single nationwide constituency | Assembly-independent diarchic directorial republic | ||||
| Sierra Leone | Parliament | 2018 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 146 (132 directly elected) | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Singapore | Parliament | 2020 | block voting via multi-winner districts | ? | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single member constituencies + party block voting group representation constituencies (PBV) | 104 (93 directly elected) | single member constituencies (SMCs) and a group representation constituencies (GRCs) | Parliamentary system | ||||
| Solomon Islands | National Parliament | 2019 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 50 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Switzerland | Council of States All cantons, except: | 2023 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-2 | One-round (plurality) or two-round (majority) block voting | 46 | Cantons | |||||
| Syria | People's Council | 2020 | block voting via multi-winner districts | ? | Party block voting (PBV) | 250 | electoral districts | Semi-presidential system | ||||
| Tonga | Legislative Assembly | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 26 (17 directly elected) | electoral districts in 5 islands and nobility | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Trinidad and Tobago | House of Representatives | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 41 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Turkmenistan | Assembly | 2018 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 125 | electoral districts | Presidential system | |||||
| Tuvalu | 2019 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 2 | Plurality block voting (BV) | 16 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Uganda | Parliament | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 529 (499 directly elected) | electoral districts, 146 seats reserved for women | Presidential system | |||||
| rowspan="12" | United Kingdom and its devolved assemblies, Crown Dependencies and British overseas territories | House of Commons | 2019 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 650 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | ||||
| Anguilla House of Assembly | 2020 | single-winner districts | 1 (local districts), 4 (nationwide constituency) | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in local constituencies+ plurality block voting (BV) nationwide | 13 | electoral districts and a single nationwide constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Bermuda House of Assembly | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 36 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | ||||||
| Cayman Islands Parliament | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 19 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | Block voting was used before the 2017 election | |||||
| Falkland Islands Legislative Assembly | 2021 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 3-5 | Plurality block voting (BV) | 8 | Stanley constituency and Camp constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Guernsey States of Deliberation | 2020 | block voting at-large | 38 | Plurality block voting, each voter has up to 38 votes | 40 (38 directly elected) | single nationwide constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Isle of Man House of Keys | 2021 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 2 | Plurality block voting (BV) | 24 | electoral districts | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Jersey States Assembly | 2018 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1-4 (local districts), 4 (nationwide constituency) | Winner-take-all parallel voting / superposition:First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single-member districts, Plurality block voting (BV) in multi-member districts seats + Plurality block voting (BV) nationwide | 49 | electoral districts and a single nationwide constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Montserrat Legislative Assembly | 2019 | block voting at-large | 9 | Plurality block voting, each voter has up to 9 votes | 11 (9 directly elected) | single nationwide constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Saint Helena Legislative Council | 2021 | block voting at-large | 12 | Plurality block voting, each voter has up to 12 votes | 15 (12 directly elected) | single nationwide constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| Turks and Caicos Islands House of Assembly | 2021 | block voting via multi-winner districts | 1 (local districts), 5 (nationwide constituency) | Winner-take-all parallel voting / superposition:First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single-member districts + Plurality block voting (BV) nationwide | 21 (15 directly elected + 4 appointed + 2 ex officio) | electoral districts and a single nationwide constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| British Virgin Islands House of Assembly | 2019 | single-winner districts | 1 (local districts), 4 (nationwide constituency) | Winner-take-all parallel voting / superposition:First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in single-member districts + Plurality block voting (BV) nationwide | 13 | electoral districts and a single nationwide constituency | Parliamentary system | |||||
| rowspan="9" | United States and its territories | House of Representatives | 2020 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in 45 states | 435 | electoral districts within states (congressional districts) | Presidential system | ||||
| Runoff (RV/TRS) in Georgia, Mississippi, and Texas (in case, if required for majority votes) | ||||||||||||
| Instant-runoff (IRV/RCV) for Alaska (in the second half for its general election) and Maine | ||||||||||||
| Senate | 2020 | single-winner districts | 1 (alternating elections) | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) in 45 states | 100 | states | Presidential system | |||||
| Runoff (RV/TRS) in Georgia, Mississippi, and Texas (in case, if required for majority votes) | ||||||||||||
| Instant-runoff (IRV/RCV) for Alaska (in the second half for its general election) and Maine | ||||||||||||
| Electoral College | 2020 | varies by state | 1-55 | General ticket in 48 states based on the results of the first-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) and 2 states (Alaska and Maine) based on the results of the Instant-runoff (IRV/RCV) election(s)Maine and Nebraska use the same method for 2 statewide electors, the remaining electors are chosen in congressional districts | 538 | states and Washington D.C.(except Maine and Nebraska, where the congressional districts also work as constituencies) | Presidential system | Alaska has used FPTP in the 2020 election, RCV/IRV will be used first in the next (2024) presidential election. | ||||
| American Samoa | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | ||||||||||
| Guam | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | ||||||||||
| Uzbekistan | Legislative Chamber | 2020 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | 150 | electoral districts | second round is also held if turnout is lower than 33% | |||||
| Vietnam | National Assembly | 2021 | block voting via multi-winner districts | Two-round block voting system in multi-member constituencies (first round needs more than 50% to get elected, second round uses plurality) | 500 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Yemen | House of Representatives | 2003 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 301 | electoral districts | ||||||
| Zambia | National Assembly | 2021 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | 167 (156 directly elected + 8 appointed by the President + 3 ex officio) | electoral districts | Presidential system |
Countries that replaced winner-take-all representation before 1990 are not (yet) included.
| Country | Legislative body | Last use | System | Old System | New System | Governmental system | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | 1991 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | Mixed-member proportional / additional member system (MMP/AMS) | ||||||
| Algeria | 1991 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| Cyprus | 1981 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| Denmark | 1920 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| Fiji | 2006 | single-winner districts | Instant runoff voting (IRV) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | Before 1999, plurality block voting and single member plurality were used | |||||
| Hong Kong | 1998 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | |||||||
| Lebanon | 2012 | block voting | Block voting | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| Lesotho | 1998 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Mixed-member proportional / additional member system (MMP/AMS) | ||||||
| Malta | 1921 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Single transferable vote (STV) | ||||||
| Moldova | 1994 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| Morocco | 1993 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| Netherlands | 1917 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| New Zealand | 1993 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Mixed-member proportional representation (MMP) | ||||||
| Portugal | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | |||||||
| South Africa | 1997 | single-winner districts | First-past-the-post (FPTP/SMP) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||
| Togo | 2002 | single-winner districts | Two-round system (TRS) | Party-list proportional representation (List PR) | ||||||