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CBC New Brunswick
January 23,
2003
Summary:
Article discusses
the support of political
scientists for full representation (proportional representation) in
Canada.
http://nb.cbc.ca/template/servlet/View?filename=nb_votingrules20030123
Canada Prof lobbies for electoral
change
January
23, 2003 FREDERICTON ’Äî A move to overhaul Canada's voting rules is
gaining ground in New Brunswick. A professor at the University of
New Brunswick is one of 103 political scientists endorsing an
organization called Fair Vote Canada , that wants to replace the
country's voting system. Under the system of voting used in Canada,
a party can win a majority of seats even if it gets less than 50 per
cent of the total vote. But Fair Vote Canada wants a new system,
one that would give parties a percentage of seats based on their
percentage of votes. It's called proportional representation. UNB
professor Paul Howe is backing the concept. "If they get 10 or 15
per cent of the voters they get 10 or 15 per cent of the seats. So
fairness is one of the key elements." The idea is attracting the
attention of some politicians, too. Jean Dube is a Conservative MLA
and a former federal MP. When he was elected to the House of Commons
in 1997 the Tories and the Reform Party each got 19 per cent of the
vote across Canada, but Reform won 60 seats and the Tories got 20.
Dube says he would have preferred proportional representation. "It
would have probably translated into more seats for us as the
opposition." A change would benefit smaller parties and work
against those in power, so convincing governments to adopt the idea
won't be easy. But British Columbia, Quebec and Prince Edward Island
are all studying whether to adopt a form of proportional
representation in provincial elections. |
