Voting in a deliberative assembly — such as parliament — is usually by voice vote, where each member is called on to indicate their vote and the Speaker declares the result. Other voting methods can include roll call votes, secret ballots, and preferential voting.
In parliamentary systems, governments are selected by political parties and the majority party selects a prime minister and department ministers. This arrangement allows the government to operate more quickly than the presidential alternative and is less prone to power-sharing gridlocks that can paralyze governments.
Some parliamentary systems use single transferable vote (STV) to elect Members of Parliament in constituencies with a fixed number of seats. In this system voters rank their preferred candidates in order of preference, and if no candidate achieves 50 per cent of the vote, the second preferences of eliminated candidates are transferred to the two remaining candidates. The candidate with the highest combined total is then elected. STV was used in England for mayors and for police and crime commissioners in England and Wales from 1979 to 2019.
Most legislative bodies have a set of parliamentary procedures designed to ensure that all Members are given an opportunity to participate in debate and that their views are considered. While these procedures are meant to protect the rights of minorities, the will of the majority must prevail.