First past the post fails to do what is required of it

The purpose of an electoral system is to ensure that people are able to select and reject aspirant politicians. It is in the interests of the country that the people have the widest possible choice and that their views are evenly represented. There is nothing to be gained from giving preferential representation to particular groups. In particular it is important that groups which are already powerful such as the rich are not given excessive influence because they already have influence in society. The smallest minority is the individual and so we want to make sure the individual is able to be heard. The type of system which satisfies these requirements is proportional representation because it enables people to be represented no matter whom they vote for. If people can't get the representation they want with a particular voting system then it has failed in its objectives. Fptp fails because it tends to ignore voters who do not vote for the two main parties. For a voting system to work requires that the degree of our influence is not altered by whom we vote for. We should be able to vote for any candidate and expect that the impact of our vote will not be diminished if the person we are voting for is not popular. First past the post doesn't work as a voting system because it fails this test. With fptp the impact of our vote is altered by whom we are voting for and for this reason it fails as a voting system.