In May 2011, if the coalition government has its way, we'll all have the opportunity to vote in a referendum on changing the way we elect Westminster MPs.
PR and Alternative Vote
BBC Head of Political Research, David Cowling, briefs on AV and how it differs from PR.
That change will be from one 'first-past-the-post' system to what is, in effect, another 'first-past-the-post' system.
Alternative Vote or AV.Supporters of AV call it 'fair votes'. Some even use the description 'proportional representation', or PR, to describe it.
But that's not accurate.
AV ensures that more than 50% of those voting in any constituency support the eventual winner, though perhaps not as their first preference.
But AV doesn't guarantee that representation closely - or even roughly - matches the proportions of relative electoral support.
