Electoral system for national legislature

Republic of San Marino, ODIHR Needs Assessment Report, Early Parliamentary Elections of 8 December 2019, accessed 14 December 2019

“Members of parliament (MPs) are elected under a proportional representation system with preferential voting in a single nationwide constituency and a five per cent threshold for seat allocation. Seats are allocated to lists using the d’Hondt system, and candidates are then awarded seats according to the number of preference votes that they received. In the event of a tie, preference is given to women candidates, followed by length of service as an MP, followed by seniority. Should an MP be appointed to the State Congress, their mandate is suspended and they are replaced by the next candidate on the list.

In order for representatives of a list to form a government, the list must obtain more than one-half of the valid votes cast or a minimum of 30 seats. Following the 2019 amendments, if no list meets this requirement, the two lists with the highest number of seats will each be given 15 days to agree on a coalition. In case no agreement is reached, a second round takes place between the two lists that obtained the highest number of votes. Should the winning list obtain fewer than 35 seats, a “stability reward” is granted which allocates additional seats, taking them from the lists that obtained the fewest votes, until the winning list obtains 35 seats. The remaining seats are proportionally distributed among the other lists.”