Introduction
My name is Henry Dreger. I am a retired high school
teacher. I do not represent anyone but
myself. Furthermore, I am not a member of a political
party nor have I ever been in, or run for, political office.
The Proposition
I recommend that British Columbia adopt a Mixed Member
Proportional (MMP) electoral system where half to two thirds of our
MLA s are elected in single member ridings on a plurality basis,
and the other one third to one half are elected from a political
party list. Voters would have two votes; one for the local member,
one for the party list.
Background
I approached the issue of electoral reform by, first of all,
reflecting on what is wrong or needs fixing or updating in our
present single riding plurality system. From my
observations over the years, I have concluded that our present
system is:
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Divisive; often causing antagonistic feelings among neighbours
and in the community.
-
Undemocratic; for example, in the sense that it is possible for
a party receiving 10-20 % of the popular vote to end up with little
or no representation in the Legislature.
-
Discourages voter participation; as seen in the decreasing voter
participation. This reflects disillusionment and frustration among
the electorate and is reflected in the comment “my vote
does not matter anyways”.
-
Exclusive; it encourages a “we win you
lose” attitude.
-
Unrepresentative; of the diversity of the electorate. It does
not reflect well the cultural, ethnic, or gender make up of the
people.
-
Limiting; it restricts our choices by discouraging minor or
fringe parties.
-
Producing lop-sided results; strong (but not necessarily good)
government and weak oppositiont; recent examples in BC, Alberta and
New Brunswick.
Benefits of a Mixed Member Proportional
System
I see the following advantages or improvements in my proposed Mixed
Member Proportional System:
-
Less division or anger among the electorate. The
vast majority of voters will
see their views and opinions represented in the Legislature.
-
More democratic. It is much less likely that a party
with a minority of the votes could end up with more seats than the
party receiving more votes. Nor would a party
receiving, let’s say, 38-40% of the votes receive a
majority of the seats in the Legislature.
-
Greater voter participation. This is likely to
happen because of the feeling that “my vote is going to
count”. A further benefit should be a
greater participation in political party life (one
incentive might be to get themselves on the party list for
election). This greater interest and involvement should result in a
more informed electorate.
-
A greater acceptance of and identity with the electoral
representation and political process. The party list
would also be an ideal vehicle to create a better gender balance
and allow the bringing in of representation from underrepresented
minority groups, including the handicapped.
-
Increase in our electoral choices (i.e. larger number of
parties), which again should encourage a greater voter
participation.
-
Fairer and more effective government. There will be
much less likelihood of lop-sided parliaments as we have seen them
recently in BC, Alberta and New Brunswick. A strong
opposition is a healthy situation in democracies.
-
Conducive to greater co-operation and consensus building
attitudes among politicians and parties. When you need
or depend on other groups or parties in a formal or informal
coalition, there will be less likelihood or temptation to ridicule
or demonize the other politicians or parties.
Additional Factors to Consider
Whatever system is chosen, it must always be possible for
ordinary people to run as independent candidates. So I
would encourage you to rule out a full proportional representation
system. In a PR model there should be a reasonable bar or hurdle
(e.g. in the neighbourhood of 5%-7%) to prevent an unwieldy number
of parties.
A run-off system, or two stage system, of voting should be avoided
as it could easily lead to voter fatigue.
The Preferential Ballot system would be my second
choice. It addresses some, but not all, of the concerns
expressed in my background.
Conclusion
I am fully aware that my proposed Mixed Member Proportional
System of voting is not a perfect system of electoral
democracy. It is a system, however, that has been
effectively used by countries and regions like Germany, New Zealand
and Scotland. It is a system which, in my opinion, is
far more democratic and representative of voters and their wishes
than the present single member riding plurality system (first past
the post system).
Whatever the final outcome, I encourage the
Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform to recommend a
system that includes at least an element of proportionality to our
electoral system, a system that encourages greater involvement by
the electorate and a system which gives people a greater sense that
they have been heard.