Rotten Borough
A type of parliamentary borough in the UK
Real World Example
A rotten borough was a parliamentary district in the UK with very few voters, yet it still elected a representative to Parliament. This was significant between 1815-1915 because it highlighted the unfairness in the electoral system, where some areas had disproportionate influence. Rotten boroughs often allowed wealthy landowners to control elections, undermining true democratic representation. The Reform Acts in the 19th century aimed to correct these imbalances by redistributing seats and expanding the voting franchise. Today, this concept reminds us of the importance of fair representation, and it relates to issues like gerrymandering, where district boundaries are manipulated for political advantage, affecting how communities are represented and how resources are allocated.
