Proportional Representation in Bangladeshi Election System for Democratic Sustainability

This narrative review investigates how the Proportional Representation (PR) may be a solution to the Bangladeshi election system, as a way of enhancing democratic sustainability. The First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) electoral system that Bangladesh uses now has repeatedly given disproportionate results between the number of votes and the number of seats, leaving smaller political parties, women, minority groups and various political viewpoints unrepresented. These imbalances have helped in polarizing politics, poor representation of opposition and decreasing citizen confidence in elections. Based on academic sources, policy reports, media articles, and comparative international experiences, this review will examine the theoretical underpinnings of PR, its benefits in democracy and whether PR is applicable to the Bangladesh political environment. The paper has pillared the relevance of PR in promoting fairness in elections, inclusive representation, less win-takes-all politics, and post-election conflicts. The study examines reform efforts underway in Bangladesh, such as those of the civil society organizations and the Electoral Reform Commission, political and constitutional issues relating to switching to PR. The review provides an analysis of the criticisms of PR, including the issue of stability of governance, complexity in administration, and constitutional viability and outlines the possibility of a hybrid and a staged reform as possible avenues to implementation. PR is not a panacea, but its slow and gradual implementation may lead to dramatic effect on democratic consolidation, political accountability, and long-term democratic sustainability in Bangladesh.