There are 129 members (‘MSP’s’) of the Scottish Parliament, elected by a mixed member proportional representation (MMP) system – 73 are elected to single member constituencies by ‘first past the post’, with the other 56 being elected by a 2nd vote to 8 additional member regions, with the outcome dependent on the results for the political parties of the 1st vote in the region’s constituencies. Elections happen every 5 years, with the last happening in May 2016.
Though these politicians fundamentally affect our lives on a day-to-day basis through supporting their party’s policies, and their participation in, and oversight of, government and the essential services that keep the nation going, it’s difficult to get the big picture AND the detail, AND how both have changed over time, in the one source. This first ever political knowledge atlas of the members, constituencies & electoral regions of the Scottish Parliament helps solve that problem.