Assess The Changes In Voting And Parliamentary Representation Between 1832 And Up Until 1928

Introduction

The purpose of this essay is to assess the changes in voting and parliamentary representation between 1832 and up until 1928 starting with the changes in the great reform act of 1832. This paper will account for the changes in the political landscape and how over an estimated 96 years Britain slowly transitioned into a democracy. This paper will account for the further legislations after 1832 that widened the population’s ability to participate in voting and also the changes in politics in general for example the period between each election and the establishment of new parties. Finally, this paper will account for why Britain could be declared a democratic country based on conditions that had to be met and how they were met by

A surreal illuminati-like conspiracy theory after today’s standard but that was actually the current state in Britain before 1832. The system was based on a monarch and a parliament with MP’s distributed very unfairly in the country. This meant that only few geographical areas had the right to participate in the electoral system. Small rural boroughs had been given a larger amount of MP’s than big cities and counties. This essentially meant that a small borough had more power over the country’s future than big cities. Not only this, but those who were eligible to vote were men over the age of 21 and with a massive amount of wealth, more specifically property owners over a certain amount of estimated value rendering over 96% of the country ineligible to vote by those criteria: A system undoubtedly unfair by today’s democratic standards. As the French revolution happened, tension began to rise in the country midst social and economic changes within Britain that finally sparked a need for change among the

The Chartists had six different demands focusing on the eligibility of voting. They demanded that all men should have the right to vote; furthermore they demanded annual elections and an end to unfair distribution of MP’s between geographical areas; one should have the right to vote in secret instead of publicly displaying which party they support in order to eliminate intimidation from powerful men who would benefit from specific parties. The Chartists also demanded an end to property ownership qualifications making every man eligible to run for MP and also that those men could be paid by the parliament. These demands were first met many years after the initial inquiry but were still deemed as aggressive pressure from the working class forcing the parliament to make further adjustments to the system through a second reform act. Another move made by the parliament in order to sustain peace and avoid a revolution. Although it was to defend the already-established power held by the upper class, a revolution would also have been unhealthy for the country in terms of the chaos and rioting that would have erupted in the streets. The chartists’ demands were not met but regulations were made by the