Whats the difference between a constituency and a regional Assembly Member?
There are 60 AMs in the Assembly and we all have five representing us – one constituency AM and four region AMs. Constituency AMs There are 40 constituency AMs in the Assembly – they are voted in by a local constituency to represent that constituency via a voting system called ‘First Past the Post’. It’s a very simple voting system – whoever gets the most votes in a constituency wins that constituency seat. Regional AMs There are 20 regional AMs. These are voted in on a regional basis – they therefore represent a much wider geographical spread then a constituency AM. Who wins a regional seat is determined via a ‘proportional representation’ system of voting – it helps make sure that the number of seats a party gets in the Assembly more closely matches the percent of votes they received across Wales. Constituency and regional AMs have the same voting rights in the Assembly and both types of AM can play a full role in the Assembly’s committees, meetings, practices and responsibilities. B
