Turkish Cypriot legislature abolishes mixed voting system
Turkish Cypriot lawmakers voted to require voters to select candidates from a single party at future legislative elections.
Nicosia, Cyprus. The Turkish Cypriot legislature voted on Thursday to abolish the mixed voting system, requiring voters to choose candidates from one party in future legislative elections, most likely to be held in December.
The measure passed with 26 votes in favour and 19 against.
Parliamentary vote
Twenty-two members of ruling coalition party the UBP and two members of coalition partner the DP voted in favour of the change.
They were joined by Erhan Arikli, leader of the YDP, which left the coalition last week, and independent Hasan Tosunoglu, who caucuses with the coalition.
The 17 members of the CTP voted against the measure, along with independents Aysegul Baybars and Jale Refik Rogers.
Previous system
Under the mixed voting system, Turkish Cypriot voters could select candidates from multiple parties rather than being confined to one party.
Voters using the system had to select between 23 and 50 candidates overall and vote either for candidates from at least two parties or for one party and one independent candidate.
The north is divided into six electoral districts centred on Famagusta, Kyrenia, Lefka, Morphou, northern Nicosia and Trikomo. Since the 2018 election, voters have been able to select candidates in all districts, allowing a voter in Nicosia, for example, to vote for a candidate standing in Lefka or Trikomo.
District requirements
Mixed voters were not required to vote for candidates in all six districts. However, they had to select at least half the number of candidates corresponding to the seats allocated to each district, and no more than the total number of seats allocated there.
In northern Nicosia, voters selected between six and eight candidates; in Famagusta, between six and 13; in Kyrenia, between five and 11; in Trikomo, between two and five; in Morphou, between one and three; and in Lefka, between one and two.
With the system abolished, all voters will be required to choose a party at the next Turkish Cypriot legislative elections.
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