Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Describing the basic flaw of Proportional Representation (PR) is challenging because advocates of PR offer at least a half dozen or more PR variations without ever specifying which one they propose should be implemented if we ditch ‘first past the post’ (FPTP), so agreeing to ditch FPTP in favour of adopting PR is like buying a pig in a poke. That said, PR generally assigns legislators to Parties based on the Parties’ share of the popular vote, in addition to legislators directly elected to represent specific constituents, contributing in at least two ways to increased power to Party bosses.  First, the extra legislators are accountable mainly to their Party rather than being representatives for any specific electors, since they owe their appointment to their Party. Legislators who act as if they are beholden to their Party rather than to electors are already a huge contributor to lack of democratic legitimacy in Canada’s electoral system today, and the question is whether we wan...

A lmost a decade has passed since Justin Trudeau vowed to change Canada’s electoral system. Since, Canada has had two elections where the party with the most votes did not have the greatest number of seats — 2019 and 2021 — and the latest one, where more than four in five voters selected one of two parties. The seat count of the 2025 federal election in BC closely mirrors the voting percentages for the main contenders. In a way, it almost looks like a proportional representation ballot: 42 per cent and 20 seats for the Liberal Party, 41 per cent and 19 seats for the Conservative Party, 13 per cent and three seats for the NDP and three per cent and one seat for the Green Party. Our exit poll asked Canadian voters about implementing a system of proportional representation for federal elections. Almost three in five (58 per cent) like the idea, while 17 per cent dislike it and 25 per cent are not sure. The results are intriguing, because direct animosity towards a change is lower than ind...

Did your ballot count in the ­provincial election? If your favoured candidate got the most votes, you and 1.09 million other British Columbia voters succeeded. Your ballot counted and will influence politicians and the direction of the province. If you didn’t vote for the winner in your electoral district, you are among 1.05 million ­voters whose ballots were wasted ... CLICK HERE for the full story

A new motion building on the work of Kitchener Centre MP Mike Morrice has reinvigorated the discussion of electoral reform in Canada. On Tuesday, members of the House of Commons had their first chance to debate a motion, modelled on one put forward by Morrice, a Green MP, in January, to create a national citizens’ assembly on electoral reform. The debate marks a return to a topic that once dominated the Liberal agenda, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first promising electoral reform during the 2015 federal election, before abandoning the promise halfway through his first term in 2017 ... CLICK HERE for the full story

  In a few short months, MPs will be voting on Motion M-86 for a National Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform. The overwhelming majority of Canadians want to ditch first-past-the-post. We need MPs to step up, show courage and kickstart the change. To win this groundbreaking vote, we need to reach as many MPs as possible—from ALL parties!—about what a National Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform is, and why they should vote for it! There is an amazing opportunity coming up: MPs from three different parties (so far) are co-hosting a reception on November 1 near Parliament Hill, for MPs and staff only, to learn about Motion M-86 for a National Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform. Can you encourage your MP to attend this important event ?  ...

  A couple of weeks ago, I got an email that I want to share with you: “Dear Anita,  Currently I am vacationing in the Netherlands. While watching the daily Dutch news presentation on television my jaw dropped. Party members walked across the aisles to other parties in an effort to make agreements on strategies for combating high prices that affect the cost of living…” The result of these conversations? The Dutch MPs passed motions to raise the minimum wage and social benefits, increase childcare support and delay raising gas taxes. MPs of different partisan stripes working together to solve problems happens every day in many countries with proportional representation. What is a jaw-dropping and disorienting experience for a Canadian observer wouldn’t even raise an eyebrow in many countries. Denmark is another example of how working across party lines can get things done. Denmark already has a broad coalition government . It consists of parties spanning the political...

Over the past several weeks, I have made no bones about the fact the BC Liberals are wrong when it comes to telling us not to vote on questions #2 of the referendum currently underway. As I have stated, their mantra is One and Done , to which I have said … THEY ARE MISLEADING THE PEOPLE OF BC. What they are recommending that you do is to potentially relinquish the opportunity to have a say in how you get to vote in the next election … the following two … and perhaps even more. I cannot believe that they would do such a thing, however it seems that their goal is to simply drive down the number of referendum ballots being completed … by creating a false sense of confusion on the ballot itself. THAT SHOCKS ME … and it should shock you as well. First Past the Post (FPTP)? If that is your preference then by all means, vote to retain it. BUT, for heavens sake, make sure you also complete the second half of the ballot regarding Proportional Representation options (Pro-R...

Today I completed filling in my ballot for the Referendum Vote – and NO, I did NOT “ Vote One and Done ”, as the BC Liberal Party is recommending you do.  In so doing, each and every one of them is recommending an erroneous suggestion, which could alter your democratic right to be heard, and to have a say in any future voting system we may have for the next provincial election! Todd Stone, Peter Milobar, and every other BC Liberal MLA in the province –- including their leader Andrew Wilkinson -- want you to believe that the Electoral Referendum, currently underway, is complicated ... IT IS NOT. Day after day, you are hearing the BC Liberals tell you the referendum is complicated – and that is likely having you wonder, ‘ How can Alan possibly say it isn’t ?’.    I can, because for starters, there is plenty of unbiased information available at Elections BC … and secondly, if you check out this short 4 minute 28 second video , I can guarantee you’ll s...

Guest Commentator Ian MacLeod -- see full BIO below -- Today, we have a Guest Post from Ian MacLeod, who says ... the Proportional Representation (PR) referendum before BC today must be defeated, both due to the rigged and deeply flawed process and on the long-term damage a yes vote would do to BC.  Here's why ... FIRST , the process is rigged and fatally flawed, and fails on at least 3 counts: “A pig in the poke”: Unlike 2005 and 2009, there was no real consultation as to the options. If we vote yes to PR on this incomplete package, we then have to choose from three options without the real and meaningful details (size of ridings, number of members per riding, method of selecting PR “top-ups”, etc) – a real “pig in the poke”. A rigged choice: It is rigged to support the extorted deal with the Green Party. Proportional Representation (PR) is the only option offered, not surprisingly, the one most suited to the Greens. The Greens have never earned more than 17%...

From Todd Stone, to Tracy Redies, to John Yapp, to Jane Thornthwaite, to Doug Clovechok, to Mike Bernier, to Lorne Letnick … the list of BC Liberal MLA’s all singing from the same song book goes on and on as their united voices all say, “Vote One and Done".   Let me say this … they, along with supporters of the BC Liberal Party are WRONG!   Even IF you do support retaining our current system of  and have no wish to change to some form of Proportional Representation, it IS vitally important for you to vote on Question #2!   Despite the Liberals trying to persuade us differently, there is indeed plenty of information on the vote , and it is from an independent source – Elections BC.   There you’ll find pretty much everything you need to make an informed choice about the different voting systems, and the different rules for each … including how voters cast their ballot, how votes are counted, and how votes translate into seats in the l...

MEL ROTHENBERGER: There are so many things wrong with the referendum on proportional representation, it would take as long to cover it all as it would to explain the convoluted and foggy alternatives on the ballot. So let’s just talk about the hocus pocus of proportional representation (also known as prop rep, pro rep or PR) math. This one giant flaw should be enough to make us run, not walk, away from prop rep. Throughout the months leading up to this vote, prop rep boosters have relied heavily on a simplistic abracadabra formula to convince us their system makes sense. Their favourite line is “40 per cent of the votes should equal 40 per cent of the seats,” or variations thereof. With the current First Past the Post, they say, “39 per cent of the votes = 54 per cent of the seats = 100 per cent of the power” but with PR “39 per cent of the vote = 39 per cent of the seats = Compromise, cooperation, collaboration.” This is labeled “Proportional Representation Math.”...