Why the 2015 UK election spells the bitter end for the biggest ‘law’ in political science

The United Kingdom general election takes place next week, with current polling predicting no clear majority in the House of Commons for any party. One of the most well-known concepts in political science is Duverger’s Law, which states that two parties will dominate under ‘first past the post’ systems, as is the case in the U.S. This concept also held for the UK, until the recent rise of smaller parties and the decline of the traditionally largest parties, Labour and the Conservatives. Patrick Dunleavy examines the decline of two-party politics in Britain, and argues that it sounds the death knell for Duverger’s Law, with Britain now having a multi-party system akin to that which exists in other western European countries.