Submission CARELESS-1067 (Online)

I have lived in BC for 35 years and I strongly support the MMP system because I believe this system provides the best opportunity for each vote to count, and thus is more democratic than our existing system. [1 page]

I have lived in BC for 35 years and I strongly support the MMP system because I believe this system provides the best opportunity for each vote to count, and thus is more democratic than our existing system. I am very concerned over Commission's decision to hear oral submissions from only 9 individuals of the 80 who have applied to present. I am even more concerned when I note that 4 of these 9 (i.e. 45% of presenters) support some form of preferential voting - such as STV. This in no way reflects the fact that 80% of the written submissions to the Commission support a proportional MMP style system and only 12% have written in to support an STV preferential-style approach. Seems to me the very type of voter misrepresentation and power manipulation that this Commission is supposed to be trying to solve in our electoral system is being utilized to influence the Commission's final recommendations. Whether this was intentional or not, the optics are terrible. The perspectives of your presenters should proportionally conform to the perspectives which have been submitted to you by the public. Failure to do this will seriously -perhaps fatally - damage the credibility of your Commission and only deepen the public's mistrust of, indeed disgust with politics. This is the last thing a democracy such as British Columibia needs. And you of this Commission should know that better than most. If you want your work, deliberations and recommendations to have any credibility, I most strongly suggest you correct this imbalance in the presenters that you are hearing from. Thank you.