Official Guidance for Nominating Officers & Election Agents
National List Nomination, Deposit & Allocation Guide
System: The McNamara Cascade Protocol (MCP) • Chamber: Scottish Parliament (129 Seats Fixed) • Ballot: Single Nationwide List
1. Statutory Nomination Deposits
Registered Party Slate: £5,000
Covers a full nationwide party list (up to 129 candidates). Confers single-ballot access to all 2.3M+ voters across all 32 local authorities (equivalent to £38.76/candidate vs £40,500 under old AMS rules).
Individual Candidate: £2,500
Covers an independent candidate standing in personal capacity (statutory capacity capped at 1 seat). Grants full inclusion in national voter guides and broadcast candidate coverage.
2. Deposit Return & Rebate Rules
| Qualifying Condition | Party Refund (£5k) | Ind. Refund (£2.5k) | Administrative Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elected to Parliament (Stage 1, 2, or 3) | £5,000 (100%) | £2,500 (100%) | Immediate refund next working day. |
| Certified Top-5 Cascade Standby List | £2,500 (50%)* | £1,250 (50%)* | *Remaining 50% returned if seated mid-term. |
| Proximity Relief (Within 100 votes of 5th Standby) | £2,500 (50%) | £1,250 (50%) | Accounts for recount margin variance. |
| Sub-Threshold / Unranked | £0 (Forfeited) | £0 (Forfeited) | Transferred to Scottish Consolidated Fund. |
3. Three-Stage Allocation Overview
-
Stage 1 (Integer Quotas): The Effective Quota is computed as
Q = Active Votes / 129(~0.775% of vote). Each party receives⌊Votes / Q⌋seats. Any unused quota fractions are held in reserve. - Stage 2 (The Cascade Pool): All unallocated seats ($R = 129 - S_1$) are pooled. Unseated party slates and independents with $>0$ votes are ranked strictly by raw votes. One seat is awarded to each entrant in rank order until the pool is filled.
- Stage 3 (Surplus Fail-Safe): If unseated entrants are exhausted, remaining seats pass cyclically to Stage 1 seat-winning parties in order of largest fractional vote remainders.
- Casual Vacancies (Zero By-Elections): Party vacancies automatically pass to the next candidate on that party's general election list. Independent vacancies pass to the 1st Runner-Up on the Stage 2 Standby Leaderboard.
4. Statutory Nomination Requirements
• Certified List of Candidates (Ranked 1 to 129)
• Electronic Funds Transfer of Statutory Deposit
• Certificate of Party Authorization (Party Lists)
• Written Consent to Nomination & Home Address Form