Crossing the floor
Encyclopedia
In politics
, crossing the floor has two meanings referring to a change of allegiance in a Westminster system
parliament.
The term originates from the British House of Commons
, which is configured with the Government and Opposition facing each other on rows of benches. Votes, or division
s, are taken by entering lobbies
to the left and right of the chamber to have one's vote tallied; the "Aye Lobby" is on the Government side and the "No Lobby" on the Opposition side. If one wishes to vote against one's party, one must quite literally cross the floor to get to the other lobby. An MP
who switched parties would also need to cross the floor.
Winston Churchill
crossed the floor from the Conservatives
to the Liberals
, before later crossing back.
parliamentary democracies (such as Canada
, Australia
, New Zealand
and South Africa
) even if many of these countries have semicircular or horseshoe-shaped debating chambers and mechanisms for voting without Members of Parliament leaving their seats. It is most often used to describe members of the government party or parties who defect and vote with the opposition against some piece of government-sponsored legislation.
In Australia, one of the major parties (the Australian Labor Party
) forbids its members from crossing the floor, while amongst other parties it is rare. Senator Barnaby Joyce
of the National Party of Australia
however, crossed the floor 19 times under the Howard coalition government. However, the record for crossing the floor in the Australian Parliament goes to Tasmanian Senator Sir Reg Wright, who voted against his own party (the Liberal Party of Australia
) on 150 occasions.
In April 2006, the premier of Manitoba
, Canada
, Gary Doer
(NDP
), proposed a ban on crossing the floor of the Manitoba legislature. According to Mr Doer, this move came in response to "the concern some voters have expressed over the high-profile defections of three federal MPs from their parties in just over two years." The resulting legislation, which amended the provincial Legislative Assembly Act, mandated that Members of the Legislature who quit their political party to serve out the remainder of their term as independents.
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, crossing the floor has two meanings referring to a change of allegiance in a Westminster system
Westminster System
The Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
parliament.
The term originates from the British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
, which is configured with the Government and Opposition facing each other on rows of benches. Votes, or division
Division (vote)
In parliamentary procedure, a division of the assembly is a voting method in which the members of the assembly take a rising vote or go to different parts of the chamber, literally dividing into groups indicating a vote in favour of or in opposition to a motion on the floor...
s, are taken by entering lobbies
Lobbying
Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...
to the left and right of the chamber to have one's vote tallied; the "Aye Lobby" is on the Government side and the "No Lobby" on the Opposition side. If one wishes to vote against one's party, one must quite literally cross the floor to get to the other lobby. An MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
who switched parties would also need to cross the floor.
Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
crossed the floor from the Conservatives
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
to the Liberals
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
, before later crossing back.
Voting against party lines
The term has passed into general use in other WestminsterWestminster System
The Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
parliamentary democracies (such as Canada
Politics of Canada
The politics of Canada function within a framework of parliamentary democracy and a federal system of parliamentary government with strong democratic traditions. Canada is a constitutional monarchy, in which the Monarch is head of state...
, Australia
Politics of Australia
The Politics of Australia take place within the framework of a parliamentary democracy, with electoral procedures appropriate to a two-party system. Australia is governed as a federation and as a constitutional monarchy, with an adversarial legislature based upon the Westminster system...
, New Zealand
Politics of New Zealand
The politics of New Zealand take place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic monarchy. The basic system is closely patterned on that of the Westminster System, although a number of significant modifications have been made...
and South Africa
Politics of South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a unitary, parliamentary republic. The President of South Africa is both head of state and head of government; in the same manner as the prime minister of other nations, the President is elected by the National Assembly and must enjoy the confidence of the Assembly...
) even if many of these countries have semicircular or horseshoe-shaped debating chambers and mechanisms for voting without Members of Parliament leaving their seats. It is most often used to describe members of the government party or parties who defect and vote with the opposition against some piece of government-sponsored legislation.
In Australia, one of the major parties (the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
) forbids its members from crossing the floor, while amongst other parties it is rare. Senator Barnaby Joyce
Barnaby Joyce
Barnaby Thomas Gerald Joyce , Australian politician, has been a National Party member of the Australian Senate representing the state of Queensland since July 2005...
of the National Party of Australia
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...
however, crossed the floor 19 times under the Howard coalition government. However, the record for crossing the floor in the Australian Parliament goes to Tasmanian Senator Sir Reg Wright, who voted against his own party (the Liberal Party of Australia
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
) on 150 occasions.
Changing parties
In the United Kingdom, Canada, and other countries, the term is also used to describe leaving one's party entirely and joining another party, such as leaving an opposition party to support the government (or vice versa), or even leaving one opposition party to join another. In both Canada and the United Kingdom, the term carries only this meaning, and is not used for a simple vote against the party line on a bill.In April 2006, the premier of Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Gary Doer
Gary Doer
Gary Albert Doer, OM is a Canadian diplomat and politician from Manitoba, Canada. Since October 19, 2009, he has served as Canada's Ambassador to the United States...
(NDP
New Democratic Party of Manitoba
The New Democratic Party of Manitoba is a social-democratic political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is the provincial wing of the federal New Democratic Party, and is a successor to the Manitoba Co-operative Commonwealth Federation...
), proposed a ban on crossing the floor of the Manitoba legislature. According to Mr Doer, this move came in response to "the concern some voters have expressed over the high-profile defections of three federal MPs from their parties in just over two years." The resulting legislation, which amended the provincial Legislative Assembly Act, mandated that Members of the Legislature who quit their political party to serve out the remainder of their term as independents.
See also
- Floor crossing (South Africa)Floor crossing (South Africa)Floor crossing in South Africa was a controversial system under which Members of Parliament, Members of Provincial Legislatures and Local Government councillors could change political party and take their seats with them when they did so...
- List of British politicians who have crossed the floor
- List of Canadian politicians who have crossed the floor
- TransformismTrasformismoTrasformismo was the method of making a flexible, centrist coalition of government which isolated the extremes of the left and the right in Italian politics after the unification but before the rise of Benito Mussolini and Fascism. One of the more successful politicians was Giovanni Giolitti who...
for a similar concept in Italy - Party switchingParty switchingParty-switching is any change in political party affiliation of a partisan public figure, usually one currently holding elected office.In many countries, party-switching takes the form of politicians refusing to support their political parties in coalition governments...
for a similar concept - Aisle (political term)Aisle (political term)In the United States, the two major political parties, the Republicans and the Democrats, are often referred to as "the two sides of the aisle".- Origin of the usage :...