The office

Casting votes and impartiality conventions

Most constitutions limit the Speaker's vote, and many Speakers follow conventions of political neutrality.

• Section 40 of Australia's Constitution states that the Speaker shall not vote unless the numbers are equal, and then has a casting vote.³
• Article 100 of India's Constitution gives the presiding officer a casting vote in the case of an equality of votes.⁴
• Some constitutions give no casting vote at all. In Ghana and Uganda, the presiding officer has neither an original nor a casting vote, and in Kenya a tied question is lost.^5,6,7
• In the UK, a Speaker with a casting vote follows the principle of not voting against the overall majority, voting for a bill at second reading and against it at third reading.¹
• Under section 49 of Canada's Constitution Act, 1867, the Speaker votes only when the votes are equal.⁸
• The UK Commons Speaker is expected to resign from their party on appointment and not campaign in general elections. The UK Lord Speaker is expected to be politically impartial and does not take part in votes.^1,2

Sources

1. Institute for Government, Speaker of the House of Commons (explainer) (10 January 2019)
2. Institute for Government, Lord Speaker (explainer) (2 February 2026)
3. Constitute Project, Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act (rev. 1985) (Constitute Project)
4. Constitute Project, Constitution of India (rev. 2016) (Constitute Project)
5. Constitute Project, Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, 1992 (rev. 1996) (Constitute Project)
6. Constitute Project, Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, 1995 (rev. 2017) (Constitute Project)
7. Constitute Project, Constitution of Kenya, 2010 (Constitute Project)
8. Constitute Project, Constitution Acts of Canada, 1867 to 1982 (Constitute Project)