Why are these crises getting worse ?
In Canada, a majority government does just about whatever it wants, because for the next 5 years it is effectively unaccountable. Canada’s First-Past-the-Post (FPP) electoral system distorts political power and makes it relatively easy for money to corrupt politics. This power distortion shields parties from accountability, encourages adversarial politics, and makes our democracy more vulnerable to corporate influence, not to mention demagogy and extremism. A direct causal relationship can be made between FPP and the extent and duration of our health care crisis, our housing crisis, inaction on climate change, and low voter turn-out.
For anyone who feels strongly about these issues, or any other social project, it is crucial to understand the brutally suffocating impact FPP has on any effort to effect change.
Under FPP, in order to influence the outcome of an election, one need only focus on swing ridings where the top 2 or 3 candidates have a similar level of support ; this is a fraction of the total number of ridings. There are various legal ways for corporations to divert funds and resources to candidates they wish to be beholden to them. Hedge your bets by supporting candidates from multiple parties. This dynamic is easier to see in American politics because the 2 main parties account for about 98% of the vote. If addressing climate change does not agree with your business model, no problem. Trying to undermine the quality of public healthcare in order to make private healthcare seem more attractive ?, FPP has a sponsorship plan for you. This kind of corporate influence has always been a part of politics ; the issue is whether a political system protects itself from it, or encourages it. Influence does not care who wins, only that whoever does be beholden, and return favours in kind. When we talk about a political establishment, for all intents and purposes we are also talking about political lineages with well-established networks of corporate patronage (the Liberal Party), even if the faces of the parties have evolved over time (the Conservative Party). Establishment parties can be counted on to implement policies and measures that will favour their corporate patrons. Conversely, they cannot be counted on to put first the needs of the public, or the nation. Everyone else is an alternative party, though one could argue that the NDP are somewhere in the middle. An alternative political party whose support is spread out will be vastly under represented in parliament (the Green Party). An alternative party that concentrates their voting base will do better, but will never win enough seats to reliably influence parliament except in rare circumstances where they are the only party holding the balance of power with a minority government (the Bloc Québecois). Even a mature alternative party will see its effectiveness hampered by strategic voting aimed at preventing another party from wining (the NDP). Achieving the necessary political power to effect a social project that goes against corporate interests is a Sisyphean task under FPP. If you are involved in such a project, be sure you are doing it for the pleasure of networking and community, because the reward of success may not be attainable in your lifetime, under FPP.
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It is equally important to understand how proportional representation (PR) catalyses all social projects, and thus it should be a priority for every social project.
Canada’s electoral system may not be rigged, per se, however it is heavily tilted in favour of people and organisations with deep pockets. Corporations can influence elections under FPP for a fraction of what it would cost to have a similar impact under Proportional Representation (PR), because under PR, there are no swing ridings : a much greater number of votes need to be swayed in order to ensure a particular outcome. Federally in Canada, minority governments are already fairly common under FPP. Under PR, a majority government becomes an anomaly. Minority governments are vital for accountability and keeping greed and corruption in check : Minority governments must cooperate in order to stay in power, and cooperation between political parties leads to more people’s needs being listened to. Under PR, it becomes much more likely for an alternative party to hold the balance of power, and thus be able to have a real influence on public policy. Further, the British parliamentary system gives a good deal of executive power to the governing party, or coalition. This makes the parliamentary system well-suited for ensuring minority governments can be effective, in contrast to the deadlock we often see in the U.S., or in France right now. Canada’s 5 minority governments of the past 20 years are a testament to this. When parties have to cooperate, Canadians get better government.
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Ok, great, but how do we make it happen given that FPP basically protects its own existence ?
What we need is a political party that is prepared to put their larger platform aside, and to make electoral reform their sole platform for 1 election cycle.
Electoral reform is a lightning rod issue that cuts across all political parties. Some 70% of Canadians are in favour of electoral reform, many of them are frustrated that we don’t have it already. A party that is committed to implementing proportional representation could well tap into that 70% and win either a majority, or a sufficient minority to form the government and make it happen.
What if no party is willing to make electoral reform their sole priority for 1 election cycle ?
Then we would have to create a party that would do this :
• A party that would ensure all Canadians learned about the limitations of our current electoral system, and the various options for implementing PR.
• A party that would listen to the people’s preference as to what kind of PR to implement.
• A party that would hold new elections as soon as PR is implemented, so that those who were only voting for that issue, and everyone really, would be free to vote for whomever they wanted, rather than who they felt the needed to.