Following success as the successor to the Whig party, the party's share of the popular vote plummeted after the First World War as it lost votes to the new Labour party and fractured into groups such as the National and Coalition Liberals.

Although the party's share of first preference votes increased by some 22 % from 3. 84 % to 4. 69 % nationally in the 2007 general election, held on 24 May 2007, the party failed to increase the number of TDs returned.

However, the elections of 2001 saw the party's share of the popular vote climb to 75 %, winning 82 of the 84 seats.

The party's share of vote was always between 38 and 43 % from 1953 to 1979.

At the 1979 general election the party's vote share declined from 10. 8 % to 8. 1 % and Carmarthen was again lost to Labour.

The party's vote share recovered to 9. 9 % by the 1997 general election.

The Assembly elections of May 2003 saw the party's representation drop from 17 to 12, with the gains of the 1999 election falling again to Labour and the party's share of the vote declining to 21 %.

In the European Parliament elections of the same year, the party's vote share fell to 17. 4 %, and the reduction in the number of Welsh MEPs saw its representation reduced to one.

The party's share of the vote increased to 22. 4 %.

Currently, also the third parliamentarist switched to the Democratic Party ( Stronnictwo Demokratyczne ), as well as many prominent leaders that do not share the new social-democratic shift in party's ideology.

Due to the French electoral system, the party's representation in public office has been limited, despite its significant share of the vote.

They lost their Navarre seat in the 1989 election and lost a further 2 seats in the 1996 election, which overall proved to be the party's worst performance in terms of vote share.

Election statistics show that, while the LDP had been able to secure a majority in the twelve House of Representatives elections from May 1958 to February 1990, with only three exceptions ( December 1976, October 1979, and December 1983 ), its share of the popular vote had declined from a high of 57. 8 percent in May 1958 to a low of 41. 8 percent in December 1976, when voters expressed their disgust with the party's involvement in the Lockheed scandal.

In the 1963 election, the party's caucus increased by one more MLA to five, but their share of the popular vote fell to 19. 98 %.

However, this period of relative stability ended with the party's failure to make a breakthrough in the 1991 provincial election, despite increasing its province-wide vote share to 0. 86 % and fielding a slate of 42 candidates.

The campaign also faced its share of difficulties, such as leaked internal memos from the party's organizing chair explaining that organizers knew the petition drive would fail, but were simply using it to build the party's organizational base.

And after a minor decline in the party's vote share in 1983, Barrett retired as leader.

Lévesque led the PQ to victory in the 1981 election, increasing the party's majority in the National Assembly and increasing its share of the popular vote from 41 to 49 per cent.

They believed that the cabinet had become a political machine infested with converted liberals who did not genuinely share the party's ideals and were primarily interested in gaining public offices.

In Wales the party's share of the vote increased from 1. 2 % ( in 2007 ) to 2. 4 % giving the SLP the second biggest percentage gain of the total votes cast in the election meaning it far outperformed all other left-wing opposition as well as once again outperforming the BNP.

During the elections for the national assembly on January 19, 1919, from which the SPD emerged as the strongest party with 37. 9 % of the votes, the USPD only managed to attract 7. 6 %; nevertheless, the party's strong support for the introduction of a system of councils ( Räterepublik ) instead of a parliamentary democracy attracted many former SPD members, and in spring 1920, the USPD had grown to more than 750, 000 members, managing to increase their share of votes to 17. 9 % during the parliamentary elections on June 6, 1920 and becoming one of the largest fractions in the new Reichstag, second only to the SPD ( 21. 7 %).

In the subsequent 1973 " landslide " elections, the SF lost six seats ( reducing the party's share to 11 ), and re-entered the Folketing with six seats.

The distribution of the seats of that party to the 16 Lands is proportional to that party's second vote results in the Lands.

The Irish Home Rule vote in England contributed to his party's defeat.

The CSU received only 42. 5 % of the vote in Bavaria in the 2009 election, which constitutes its weakest showing in the party's history.

In order to maintain the coalition, they will have to vote against the party's platform in the parliament.

At the 1888 Republican National Convention, Douglass became the first African American to receive a vote for President of the United States in a major party's roll call vote.

The party's first electoral outing was when 7 candidates contested the November 1982 general election under the Ecology Party banner, winning 0. 2 % of the vote.

In the 2002 election, the party's vote sank back to 4. 0 %, and was able to seat only two back-benchers elected directly from their districts, Petra Pau and Gesine Lötzsch.

Puerto Rico does participate in the internal political process of both the Democratic and Republican parties in the U. S., accorded equal-proportional representation in both parties, and delegates from the islands vote in each party's national presidential convention.

To take advantage of this landmark, early elections were called in 1984, in which the NRP captured all 3 seats on Nevis, and the PAM party capturing 6 seats on St. Kitts, compared to the labour party's 2, despite overall the labour party winning the nationwide popular vote.

It also does not give a person any particular rights or obligations within the party, other than possibly allowing that person to vote in that party's primary elections.

A party really cannot prevent a person who disagrees with the majority of positions of the party or actively works against the party's aims from claiming party membership, so long as the voters who choose to vote in the primary elections elect that person.

In what is known as " presidential coattails ", candidates in presidential elections become the de facto leader of their respective party, and thus usually bring out supporters who in turn then vote for his party's candidates for other offices.

It should also be noted that while more often than not, party members will " toe the line " and support their party's policies, they are free to vote against their own party and vote with the opposition (" cross the aisle ") when they please.

National convention delegates vote on changes to the party's national platform and bylaws, and elect representatives to the Libertarian National Committee ( LNC ).

Although Perot easily won the nomination, his victory at the party's national convention led to a schism, as supporters of his opponent, former Governor Richard Lamm of Colorado, accused him of rigging the vote to prevent them from casting their ballots.

The party's first presidential ticket appeared on the ballot in 32 states and drew 39, 000 votes ( 0. 04 % of the popular vote ).

Opponents widely criticized the party's failure to elect a candidate by a primary vote, and Thurmond announced that he would mount a write-in campaign.

It is expected that members of the House vote for their party's candidate.

Those who vote for the other party's candidate often face serious consequences, up to and including the loss of seniority.