|
|
 |
|
Feature: |
|
|
| You are here: Home > Features > Citizen's Assembly on Electoral Reform |
British Columbia's Electoral Reform Legislation
Is the Commitment
to Electoral Reform legally binding or just current Government
Policy?
The legislation creating the Citizen's Assembly is an Order-in-Council,
passed by the Legislature and signed by the Lieutenant Governor
General. The legislative process was as follows:
- On April 28, 2003, the government introduced a motion to
establish the Citizen's Assembly, and nominated Dr. Jack
Blaney as Chair of the Assembly.
- The Attorney General, who is also the Minister Responsible
for Democratic Reforms, tabled the Assembly's terms of
reference and the duties of the Chair.
- On April 30, 2003, the Attorney General formally asked the
House to support the creation of a Citizens' Assembly on
Electoral Reform, and the formation of a Special Committee
of the House on the Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform.
The motion was unanimously approved.
- A proposed amendment by NDP MLA Joy McPhail, that would have
allowed the Assembly to add up to four additional members,
was defeated. Cabinet subsequently decided to amend the
Order in Council to add two aboriginal members at their
December cabinet meeting.
To learn more about the Legislative debates on the Citizens' Assembly
on Electoral Reform, please see the Hansard for April 30, 2003,
on the Government of BC Website
To learn more about the powers and responsibilities of the Special
Committee of the House on the Citizens' Assembly on Electoral
Reform
Changes to BC's Constitution Act
The Liberal Party's 2001 electoral reform campaign platform had
two components. In addition to establishing a Citizens' Assembly
on Electoral Reform, they promised to introduce legislation setting
fixed dates for provincial elections within sixty days of taking
office. Prior to 2001, the only restriction on election timing
was the Constitution Act, 1982, which requires federal and provincial
elections to be held within five years of the date of the previous
election.
On August 20, 2001, the government introduced Bill 7, the Constitution
(Fixed Dates) Election Act, 2001. The legislation makes the following
amendments to BC's Constitution Act:
- Fixes the date of the next election at May 17, 2005
- Fixes the election date in subsequent elections as the second
Tuesday in May every fourth year following the most recent
general election. (The Premier must still go through the
formality of asking the Lieutenant Governor to dissolve
the legislature and issue the order for a general election).
It is not possible to state the exact date of elections past 2005,
since an election can also be called in cases where the government
loses a non-confidence vote. (A non-confidence vote is virtually
impossible before 2005, since the Liberals hold a significant
majority of seats). Under the Fixed Dates Election Act, if an
election is held due to a non-confidence vote, the next election
would be held on the second Tuesday in May four years later.
What is the Legal Status of the Citizens' Assembly on Electoral
Reform?
If the Citizens' Assembly recommends a new electoral system, the
government commits to holding a referendum on the new system
at the next provincial election in May, 2005. Premier Gordon
Campbell has pledged to make the new electoral system law in
time for the 2009 election, if the following conditions are met:
- It passes with a simple majority (fifty percent plus one)
in at least sixty percent of the ridings
- It passes with an overall majority of sixty percent
- The current government is re-elected in 2005
Opponents have criticized the government for insisting on a sixty
percent majority, instead of a simple majority. It will be interesting
to see what position opposition parties take on this issue as
the 2005 election date draws closer.
Are the Referendum Results Binding?
At this point, it would be political suicide for the Liberals to
back out of their commitment to hold a referendum, or to change
the fixed elections legislation. However, for constitutional
reasons, referendum results cannot be binding on a government
(source: Gordon Gibson, “Provinces
Take Charge of Electoral Reform [PDF],” Fraser
Institute Website). It's important to note that the 2005 election
will be held under the current First Past the Post system, which
tends to give large majorities to the winning party. If the Liberals
win a majority of seats, they cannot be forced to honour the
referendum result.
After 2005, a Premier with a comfortable majority could introduce
legislation revising the BC Constitution Act to remove the requirement
to hold fixed elections. The impact of this would depend on the
political climate at the time.
Previous Changes to BC's Electoral System
It is interesting to compare the Citizen's Assembly process with
a previous change to BC's electoral system:
- The 1945 and 1949 elections were won by a coalition of Liberals
and Conservatives. By the early 1950s, this coalition was
disintegrating.
- Both the Liberals and the Conservatives viewed the CCF (the
forerunner to the modern day NDP) as a common political
enemy.
- Accordingly, while the coalition government was still in
place, it introduced a preferential system of voting using
the Alternative Vote system.
- Since alternative voting systems tend to hurt smaller parties,
both the Liberals and Conservatives believed this would
eliminate the CCF as a serious threat in the 1952 election.
- Instead, many voters selected the Socred Party as their second
choice, and it won a minority government.
In 1953, due to the difficulties of governing with a minority, Socred
Premier WAC Bennett deliberately forced an election over an education
issue. In 1953, the Socreds were re-elected with a majority government.
Bennett immediately reinstated the First Past the Post system,
which remains in use today.
There are several key differences between the shift to preferential
voting in 1952 and the current Citizen's Assembly on Electoral
Reform:
- In 1952, the shift to an Alternative Vote system was implemented
by politicians instead of citizens
- It was implemented solely for political reasons (to minimize
the chances of a third party victory)
- BC voters had no input into the decision to switch to an
alternative ballot, or in returning to the First Past the
Post system.
|
