And the bigger point: if the polls continue to spread out across parties like this, the next General Election will essentially be a massive game of political roulette. Narrow wins in enough FPTP races could massively inflate the representation of one party or another. Most voters would be unrepresented.
As it stands, the main beneficiary would almost certainly be Reform UK. There’s a reason Nigel Farage’s party has gone quiet about scrapping FPTP. They’re reliant on a divided opposition, their project is made possible by a fractured left and centre-left.
Reform’s lead is very much a reality. It’s one that, under any system, should be worrying for those of us who want to avoid a Trumpian future. But what’s perhaps more alarming is how FPTP could twist this picture into something even less democratic.
As Labour’s unpopularity and the Greens’ surge shows, people are keen for politics to encompass new ideas, new visions and directions. They’re sick of the status quo.
Under FPTP, that hunger for something different is punished, not rewarded. Instead of translating the country’s changing mood into genuine representation, the system scrambles it – turning diversity of opinion into instability and wasted votes.
Millions could back new parties or alternative visions and still end up with another two-party stalemate, or worse, a government elected on barely a quarter of the vote.
Reform’s rise isn’t just a political story – it’s a warning. When people feel ignored, when their votes don’t count equally, frustration curdles into anger and cynicism. Proportional Representation doesn’t erase that anger, but it channels it fairly, ensuring every vote matters and every voice is heard.
Britain has changed. Our democracy hasn’t. The longer we cling to a system built for a vanished two-party world, the more chaotic and unrepresentative our politics will become.
