Submission DEAN-0481 (Online)

I believe local representation must be an important element in our electoral system. I do not believe, under the current system, that local representation is well-implemented, due to the dominance of party discipline. I understand that, under the parliamentary system, party discipline is essential to ensure that a government is not defeated. I would therefore strongly suggest that the elements of the parliamentary system which enable governments to fall as a result of the loss of any vote should be examined and changed, so that MLAs are always free to vote as representatives of their constituencies and not solely as members of their party.

I believe that a system of voting other than first-past-the-post would allow the legislature to better reflect the values of the people of our province. I'm happy to leave the choice of the best system up to the Assembly, but I do believe the system needs to change. I'd be comfortable with mixed proportional system [MMP] or with a system of ranked voting. (In the latter, a voter would select his or her first, second and third choices. If his first choice candidate got the fewest first-choice votes, the candidate who got his second-choice vote would get that vote added to that candidate's total votes.) I don't particularly like the Single Transferable Vote system [STV], as I understand it so far.

I'd like to have more choice at the polls. In particular, I'd like to vote separately for Premier; I think it's totally undemocratic that our head of government should be selected just by the political party which happens to have a majority in the legislature.