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| You are here: Home > Features > Citizen's Assembly on Electoral Reform |
Why is BC at the forefront of the Electoral Reform Movement?
Skewed
election results, poor economic growth, and a series of scandals
have fuelled voter's demands for a new electoral system
BC's Electoral History
Demands for electoral reform are not confined to BC. However, certain
features of BC's political climate have heightened demands for
electoral reform in that province:
Previous Election Results
While critics have long complained that the First Past the Post
(FPTP) system produces skewed electoral results, this trend has
become more pronounced in recent BC provincial elections. The
most controversial was the 1996 election. With 39.45 percent
of the votes, the NDP won thirty-nine of the provincial legislature's
seventy-five seats ; By contrast, the Liberals received 41.82
percent of the votes, but won only thirty-three seats. Despite
receiving fewer votes than the Liberals, the NDP won a majority
government, while the Liberals formed the Official Opposition.
The move to create a Citizens' Assembly on electoral reform is a
direct result of the 1996 election. The Liberal Party made electoral
reform a key part of their 2001 election platform, and followed
through on their election promises after becoming the government.
However, it is interesting to note that the 2001 election results
were also skewed - this time in favour of the Liberals. The Liberals
received fifty-seven percent of the popular vote, but won ninety-seven
percent of the seats (the final results were seven-seven Liberal
seats and two seats for the NDP). Furthermore, minority parties
such as the Green Party – which received over twelve percent
of the popular vote - were virtually shut out.
This result isn't as distorted as the 1996 election, since the Liberals
received a clear majority of the popular vote. Nonetheless, it
is interesting to note that they are supporting a process that
would have drastically reduced their seat percentage if it had
been in place in 2001.
Polarized Political Climate
In British Columbia, the political climate is much more polarized
between the left-wing and right-wing than in other regions of
Canada. This increases voter dissatisfaction with the current
system, which skews the results in favour of the winning party.
Voters on the losing side feel more alienated than they would
in a less polarized political climate.
Supporters of electoral reform point out that an electoral system
that more accurately reflects the popular vote would force the
government to reach a consensus among other political parties
before implementing policies. They believe this would significantly
reduce feelings of voter alienation.
Recent Political Scandals and Economic Mismanagement
In the 1990s, several scandals exacerbated voter's frustrations
with the provincial government of the day. By the decade's end,
criminal charges, conflict of interest allegations, and a sexual
affair had forced the resignations of three premiers and a political
party leader:
- In 1991, Social Credit Premier William Vanderzalm resigned
over conflict of interest allegations surrounding the sale
of his Richmond theme park, Fantasy Gardens, to a Taiwanese
billionaire.
- In 1992, Liberal leader Gordon Wilson was forced to resign
after it was revealed that he was having an affair with
his married Deputy Leader of the House. Wilson, who was
married at the time, initially denied the affair.
- In 1995, NDP Premier Michael Harcourt resigned in the wake
of an RCMP investigation into charges that NDP party officials
stole funds from a Nanaimo bingo charity. There is no evidence
that Harcourt was personally involved in the scandal, dubbed “Bingogate” by
the media. However, as party leader he took responsibility
for it.
- In 1999, Harcourt's successor, NDP Premier Glen Clark, resigned
over breach of trust charges in a casino licensing scandal.
Police accused Clark of receiving free renovations at his
home and family cottage from a neighbour, Dimitrios Pilarinos,
in return for ensuring that Pilarinos received a casino
license. Clark was ultimately acquitted of the breach of
trust charge.
In addition, there were numerous incidents involving lower level
government members or party officials. Furthermore, the current
premier made headlines in early 2003 when he was arrested for
drunk driving in Maui.
Financial Mismanagement
Throughout the 1990s, the combination of failed economic policies
and a generally sluggish economy increased BC voters' dissatisfaction
with their government. The most publicized example was the “Fast
Ferries” fiasco. Commissioned by the Glen Clark government, the
ferries were supposed to drastically cut commute times between
the mainland and Vancouver Island, stimulating BC's ailing shipbuilding
industry in the process. But the ferries never performed as promised,
and the government eventually auctioned them off. The failed
experiment cost BC taxpayers over $300 million.
The current Liberal government has also been hit with controversy.
In December 2003, police raided the offices of two Liberal party
staffers who worked in the premier' s office. In addition, two
Liberal MLAs have recently resigned over concerns about Campbell's
leadership.
Organized Electoral Reform Movement
Organized efforts to reform BC's electoral system began after the
1996 provincial election:
In 1998, Fair Voting BC, a non-partisan advocacy group that included
members of the Conservative Party, Social Credit, the Green Party,
and the NDP, was incorporated. The organization exists to help
change BC's electoral system “to one that is more proportional,
giving equal weight to all votes.” Furthermore, they believe
BC citizens, and not the government, should select a new electoral
system.
Initially, the group's activities – which included launching a website,
writing letters to the media, and holding public talks on electoral
reform models – didn't receive a great deal of media attention.
That changed after the 2001 provincial election, when electoral
reform became a real possibility. The group recently announced
it is suspending activities until the Citizens' Assembly on Electoral
Reform makes its final recommendations in December 2004.
In 2002, the BC Green Party launched a petition calling on the provincial
government to implement an electoral system based on proportional
representation. Launched under Elections BC's Recall and Initiative
Act, the “Free Your Vote,” campaign came after the Green Party
failed to win any seats in the 2001 election, despite receiving
12.4 percent of the popular vote. The party proposed a mixed
system of proportional representation, with one-half of the MLAs
being elected by the current system, and the other half allocated
so that each political party's representation in the BC legislature
matched its share of the popular vote.
In a statement on their website, Fair Voting BC said they would
not join the campaign because of its partisan nature. Ultimately,
the petition failed to gain the 250,000 signatures required to
force its introduction in the legislature.
To learn more about the Recall and Initiative Act, visit the Elections
BC website
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