Blog 7

            Peru is a state with proportional representation in which numerous political parties participate in elections and many win seats. It is a clear demonstration of one aspect of Duverger’s Law: that countries with proportional representation tend to have a multi-party system in which several political parties hold influence.

            In the election of 2011, the following parties or party alliances won seats: Gana Perú (47), Fuerza 2011 (37), Alianza Electoral Perú Posible (21), Alianza por el Gran Cambio (12), Alianza Solidaridad Nacional (9), and Partido Aprista Peruano (4) (Wikipedia, Peruvian General Election, 2011). The total number of seats in congress is 130. According to the formula discussed in class, this distribution creates an approximate total of four effective political parties.

            Peru’s legislature is elected from 25 districts with an average district magnitude of 5.2 (Inter-Parliamentary Union, IPU PARLINE Database: PERU (Congreso de la República), Electoral System). Representation is proportional, based on a closed party list system. A threshold of 5% of valid votes or 7 seats spread across multiple districts is imposed to prevent excessive fragmentation. (Obregón, Electoral rules and governance. Notes from the Peruvian experience in comparative perspective). A search of multiple databases and web sites did not reveal the formula used to allocate seats. Peru does not have a hybrid system.

            Based on this data, it is clear that Duverger’s Law holds true in Peru. There is a proportional representation system, and as a result no single party is capable of holding a majority. However, it bears mentioning that additional cleavages may make a two-party system unlikely—in the presidential election, a winner-takes-all system, four different candidates won at least one electoral district (Wikipedia, Peruvian General Election, 2011). Unfortunately, it is impossible to test this supposition, but in any case, it is clear that Duverger’s Law is accurate in Peru within the data it can currently be applied to.

Wikipedia. Peruvian General Election, 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peruvian_general_election,_2011. Accessed November 2, 2012.

Inter-Parliamentary Union. IPU PARLINE Database: PERU (Congreso de la República), Electoral System. http://ipu.org/parline-e/reports/2251_B.htm. Accessed November 2, 2012.

Guido Canchari Obregón. Electoral rules and governance. Notes from the Peruvian experience in comparative perspective. Mundo Electoral. http://www.mundoelectoral.com/html/index.php?id=704. Accessed November 2, 2012.