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The Pirate Party looks set for a successful outing in the coming weekend's Icelandic elections.
A poll by local newspaper Morgunblaðið and the Icelandic Social Science Research Institute of the University of Iceland reports support for the Pirate Party is running at about 22.6 per cent, a point-and-a-half ahead of the ruling Independence Party and four points clear of the Left-Greens. That's impressive support, although the party's support has fallen a couple of points since March 2015.
Iceland uses s proportional representation system so the party's current level of support will likely translate into about 15 seats in the 63-member Althingi.
That won't be not enough for Píratar, the party's Icelandic name, to take government. It's also ruled out a coalition with the Independence Party.
But earlier this year Independence split and the recently-formed splinter group Viðreisn (tr. "Regeneration") is polling at 8.8 per cent and has ruled out joining a government with any of the current coalition parties. If the Pirates can align with Viðreisn and other like-minded parties it may therefore become part of a governing coalition and win some ministries.
Four years for a party founded by geeks to take over the government is not bad.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 27 2016, @08:50PM
That would almost seem to be a knock against your argument for parliamentary systems. Perhaps the built-in inertia of the two-party system helps dampen out the reactionary response you're talking about.
(Score: 2) by t-3 on Friday October 28 2016, @12:52AM
Representative democracy is simply oligarchy by another name. Someone who stands to gain power and influence will tell any lie to get elected, and exploit the "us vs. them" mob mentality that rules human social behavior. It only works when there is a high level of political awareness and involvement beyond the superficial in the population, and this cannot last for any long period of time. Direct democracy is the only way to have a truly representative system, because in direct democracy, the people represent themselves.
(Score: 2) by Thexalon on Friday October 28 2016, @01:45AM
That's the problem right there. Sure, direct democracy can be fantastic, as I know from growing up in an area where Town Meeting is a long-standing tradition, but as the scale of the thing being managed becomes larger, direct democracy becomes less and less practical.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 2) by fritsd on Friday October 28 2016, @10:08AM
Yes, I have heard that exact argument used in the UK. The UKIP has such a large proportion of the popular vote, that Nigel "you're not laughing now!!1!" Farage [wp.com] [WARNING super unpleasant website, maybe NSFW] basically represents 1/3 of the UK in the Europarliament (21 / 72 MEPs; MEP=Member of the European Parliament).
(You can guess that that does wonders for the coming Brexit negotiations!)
Yet UKIP has only 1 MP (Member of Parliament) in the Westminster parliament. That's VERY skewed.
But sometimes countries tumble into situations that cannot be solved by the two halves of the Party of Power.