The UK political system explained解读英国政治体制
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
内容简介
A general election must take place in the UK at least every five years
在英国每五年至少举行一次总选举。
The power of the monarchy has gradually dwindled since the 17th century
自从17世纪以来，国王的权力逐渐缩小。
Power in the UK parliament rests with the lower house, known as the Commons
英国国会的权力取决于下院，后者又称为平民院。
The last parliament where no party had a majority was in 1974 -- analysts predict it will happen in 2010
上一届没有任何政党在国会中取得多数发生在1974年——分析人士预言在2010年可能会发生。
London, England (CNN) -- The United Kingdom votes on a new government May 6 through a political system that dates back centuries.
英国伦敦（CNN）——5月6日，英国投票选举新一届政府，这种选举通过一种可追溯到以前数世纪的政治体制来进行。
When does an election happen?
一场选举何时举行？
The UK has no written constitution. Instead the country's electoral system is based on a series of parliamentary acts dating back to the 17th century, when men wore the sort of tights and wigs still donned on ceremonial occasions by some officials of the Houses of Parliament.
英国没有成文宪法。然而，该国的选举体制基于一系列的议会法案，这些法案可追溯到17世纪，当时的人们都身穿紧身衣裤、头戴假发，这一传统至今依然在一些重要的场合由一些国会的官员所遵循。
A general election is when voters nationwide choose lawmakers who will sit in the House of Commons, the lower chamber which initiates and approves legislation.
一场总选举发生在全国选民选择国会议员之时，国会又称为下院，它审议或者批准立法。
An election must take place, by law, at least every five years. That said, governments can call an election at any time during their term. They could also be forced into an election if they lose a majority of lawmakers in the Commons.
根据法律规定，至少每五年举行一次选举。也就是说，政府在其任内无论何时都可号召进行选举。如果他们失去了在下院的多数之后，也可能被进行选举。
Who calls an election?
由谁发起一场选举？
The starting gun in a general election is traditionally fired when the prime minister travels to Buckingham Palace to ask the queen, the UK's head of state, to dissolve parliament by royal proclamation.
总选举的发令枪在传统上是由首相去晋见并征求国王意见，国王是国家的元首，它通过发布皇家声明来解散国会。
An election must then take place within weeks. Since 1979, elections have been held between April and June. It is customary for an election to be held on a Thursday.
之后必须于数周内发起选举。从1979年以来
，选举通常于4至6月份之间进行。选举于周四进行已经成为惯例。
The vote is conducted through the "first past the post" system whereby the candidate in each constituency with the most votes wins the seat.
选举通过“首先经过票箱”的体制来进行，在每个选区赢得多数的候选人获得议员席位。
If the queen is the head of state, then how come the UK a democracy?
如果女王是政府元首，那么英国是如何成为一个民主政体的呢？
Although the UK is a monarchy, the powers of the reigning head of state have gradually dwindled since King Charles I was beheaded in 1649 following the English Civil War between Royalists and Parliamentarians.
尽管英国是一个君主政体，但是自从查理一世1649年被送上断头台以来，国王治理国家的权力逐渐缩小。那年在保皇派与议会派之间发生了英国内战。
Today, the monarch's role is largely ceremonial and mostly restricted to state functions and appearing on stamps and banknotes. But the monarch still retains formal powers and opens parliament each year.
今天，国王的权力基本上是象征性的，并且在管理政府方面受到最严格的限制，看起来仅仅相当于盖图章。
How does parliament function?
国会如何运转？
The job of parliament is to make laws, scrutinize the actions of the government and debate issues of the day. The Commons -- which has green benches -- currently consists of 650 directly elected lawmakers known as Members of Parliament or MPs who each represent a geographical constituency.
国会的工作是制定立法、监督政府以及讨论一天中的议题。下院——全部是绿色的长椅——通常是由650名直接选出的议员组成，它们通常称为平民院，每名议员代表一个地理意义上的选区。
The upper house, the Lords -- which has red benches -- is mostly appointed by the government with members serving for life. Its main duty is to vote on legislation passed by the Commons and, when necessary, to send it back for further debate.
上院，又称为贵族院——它全部都是红色的长椅——多数由政府任命，并且终身任职。它的主要职责是对下院通过的立法进行表决，或者在必要时将其发回重新进行讨论。
In certain circumstances the government can force through legislation passed by the Commons but rejected by the Lords.
在一些特定的时刻，政府可以要求将下院通过而上院否决的立法强制执行。
How is an election decided?
选举如何确定结果？
Voters do not elect the prime minister, or head of government, directly. Rather, they vote to elect a candidate representing a particular party to serve as their local MP. The leader of the party which wins the most seats is then asked by the Queen to form a government. The leader of the second largest party in the Commons becomes the "
Leader of Her Majesty's Opposition."
选民不能直接选举首相或者政府首脑。而是由他们选举出候选人，这位候选人代表一个特定的党派，来担任首相职务。在议会中赢得多数议席的党的领导人会在此后由女王授权组织一届政府。在国会中第二大党的领导人成为“女王陛下的反对党领导人”。
MPs are elected by a plurality, rather than a majority, of votes. This means that a party can win a majority of seats in the Commons without achieving an overall majority in the overall popular vote. In fact, because there are three main parties in the UK it is extremely rare for a party to win an outright majority.
议员通过受欢迎而赢得选举，而不是仅仅通过多数票。这意味着一个党能够赢得下院多数席位，而不是在所有受欢迎程度的投票中获得压倒性的多数。实际上，由于在英国有三个主要的党派，对于一个党来说要获得压倒性的多数非常少见。
The last prime minister elected by an outright majority was Stanley Baldwin, the Conservative Party leader, in 1931. In 2005, Tony Blair's Labour Party won just 35 percent of the vote but still controlled a 66-seat majority in the House of Commons.
上一届获得压倒性多数的首相是Stanley Baldwin，他是保守党的领导人，发生于1931年。在2005年，布莱尔的工党仅仅获得全体投票的35％，但是依然控制了下院的66个多数议席。
So who can I vote for?
因此我该投谁的票呢？
For most of the past century, British politics has been dominated by two parties, the left-wing Labour Party and the right-wing Conservative Party. That said, the boundaries between left and right have been blurred as each has strived to occupy the strategically important center ground.
在上世纪的多数时间，英国政治始终由两个党派为主，左翼的工党与右翼的保守党。也就是说，当每个党派试图占据压倒性的优势时，左与右之间的界限已经不再过于鲜明。
A third party, the centrist Liberal Democrats, usually picks up around 20 percent of votes but wins far fewer seats because it is squeezed between the two main parties. Parties from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also send small numbers of lawmakers to Westminster.
第三大党，最中间派的自由党，通常占20％的选票，但是赢得的席位较少，因为它被两大主要政党所挤压。来自苏格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰的党派在国会中的席位也很少。
Full guide to UK political parties
What happens if a party doesn't win a majority of seats?
如果一个党不能赢得多数席位时怎么办？
If no party wins an overall majority -- a "hung parliament" --- then the leader of the party which takes the most seats will usually be invited by the monarch to form a government. But its powers will be limited because it cannot control a majority of votes in the Comm
ons. The party will usually call another election within months in a fresh attempt to secure a majority.
如果没有一个党赢得多数——又称为“一个跛脚的国会”——多数席位的党的领导人通常被国王邀请组织政府。但是它的权力受到限制，因为它在国会中不能控制多数票。该党通常将在数月之内发起另外一次选举，以努力获得多数。
What would a hung parliament mean in 2010?
The last time this happened was in 1974, when an election in February resulted in a hung parliament. A second election followed in October of the same year. Many opinion pollsters and observers believe that the 2010 general election will result in a hung parliament.
上一次类似的事情发生于1974年，当年2月份的选举产生了一个跛脚的国会。第二次选举在同年10月份进行。许多民意测验与观察家认为2010年的选举将会产生一个跛脚国会。