At 10:05 11/11/2010, Lowenstein, Daniel wrote:
unlike several European nations
like France, we have geographic constituencies
Point of order: France uses, and since 1789 has always used, geographical
constituencies for its National Assembly elections, whether single-member
districts (1959-85, 1988- present) or multi-member constituencies
corresponding to the departments (pre-1958, then 1986-88). Thus, eg,
Valery Giscard d'Estaing won back his former seat in a by-election after
losing president to Francois Mitterrand, as did former Socialist minister
Jack Lang.
The only countries I know that make no division at all of lower house
members among particular territorial sub-sections of the whole nation,
are Israel and Cambodia. I don't know of any European countries that
don't use geographic constituencies. (Russia may have moved into this
category but the news reports aren't specific enough to
tell.)