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Leading the Way: Electoral Reform in British Columbia
The BC Citizens’ Assembly
recommends a new provincial electoral system
Although Quebec was the first province to explore the issue, British
Columbia has made the most progress in the area of electoral
reform. Significantly, in contrast to the process underway in
other provinces, electoral reform in British Columbia has been
completely citizen-driven. In 2003, the government established
an independent commission of non-elected citizens to examine
the province’s electoral system. The mandate of the Citizens’ Assembly:
to examine how votes get turned into seats in the provincial
legislature. Its terms of reference include the following:
- To examine the current electoral system and alternative
systems;
- To hold public consultations;
- To decide whether or not the current electoral system should
be retained; and,
- If the Assembly decides that BC needs a new electoral system,
to recommend a specific electoral system that is consistent
with the Canadian
Constitution and the Westminster Parliamentary system
To learn more about the operation of the Citizens’ Assembly,
see the BC Citizens’ Assembly
Backgrounder
As part of its electoral reform package, the provincial government
also passed legislation establishing fixed election dates. Consequently,
the next provincial election will be held on May 17, 2005.
Recommendations of the Citizens’ Assembly
In November 2004, the Citizens’ Assembly voted to recommend
a new electoral system. While over 90 percent of Assembly members
voted against retaining the current first past the post system
in BC, the decision on which electoral system to replace it with
was much more difficult. In the end, the Citizens’ Assembly
chose proportional representation using the single transferable
vote over the mixed member proportional system. The final vote
was 123 for the single transferable vote, versus 31 for mixed
member proportional.
In the weeks leading up to the final vote, Assembly members developed
versions of both the STV and the MMP models they felt could work
in the province. The basic features of the STV electoral model,
called BC-STV, include the following features:
- MLAs will continue to be elected by local ridings.
- The total number of MLAs will remain unchanged, both for
the province and for each region.
- There will be fewer ridings.
- Instead of one MLA per riding, each will be represented
by between two and seven MLAs, depending on the total population
of a given riding;
- Voters will still use only one ballot.
- Instead of choosing one candidate, voters will rank candidates
by their order of preference.
The means by which candidates are selected is the same as in other
countries that use the single transferable vote. In order to
be elected, candidates must receive a minimum number of votes,
called a quota. If no candidate receives enough first ballot
votes to win a riding seat, the candidate who comes in last place
is eliminated and the second choice votes on those ballots are
redistributed. This process continues until a candidate is elected.
If a candidate receive more votes than is required to win a seat,
a formula is used to transfer the votes to the candidate ranked
in second place on the ballot. (To learn more about the formula
that will be used, see BC-STV:
Counting Votes )
The Citizens’ Assembly offered three reasons for choosing
the STV model:
- It produces proportional results;
- It gives voters more choice and control; and,
- It strengthens local representation.
[To compare BC-STV with the “Made in BC” MMP model,
the Citizens'
Assembly website.
What Happens Now?
On May 17, 2005, in addition to voting for the next provincial
government, voters will also have the chance to vote on the new
electoral system in a province-wide referendum. The referendum
question, which was drafted by the Citizens’ Assembly,
will be “Should British Columbia change to the BC-STV electoral
system as recommended by the Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral
Reform? Yes/No.”
In the spring of 2004, the provincial government passed legislation
concerning the upcoming referendum. The legislation stipulates
that in order for the referendum results to be binding, they
must pass with an overall majority of 60 percent, and must pass
in at least 60 percent of ridings across the province. If the
referendum passes with the required majorities, the legislation
also stipulates the new electoral system will be implemented
in time for the 2009 provincial election.
It is unclear what will happen if the referendum fails to gain
the required majorities. There is a distinct possibility that
both the NDP and the Liberals will simply let the issue die,
while the Green Party will continue to advocate for electoral
reform. In any event, it is unlikely that the provincial government
will stage a “Citizen’s Assembly 2.”
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