Among the political institutions inherited from Canada's British past is the system by which people are elected to office. This electoral system, used by only a small minority of stable democracies, is usually referred to by a metaphor whose origins lie in the British passion for horse racing: first-past-the-post (FPTP). Yet FPTP is on the defensive even in countries with British institutions – starting with Britain itself, which has made important changes and is debating others. Australia and Ireland from the start adopted systems that significantly differed from FPTP. Even in the US, proportional (PR) systems are being discussed and, at the local level, being tried out. And in 1996 New Zealand went all the way and adopted the German form of PF. If New Zealand, the most British of Britain's ex-colonies could turn its back on FPTP, it is not surprising that it has found favour in the new South Africa or among the democracies that emerged in the wake of the demise of Communism. Yet the debate over electoral system reform is largely absent in Canada despite the outcome of recent federal elections making Canada a textbook example of how FPTP can regionalize political party representation in Parliament. This sorely needed discussion will be fostered by this book, which brings the best up-to-date analyses and critiques from the best qualified observers to bear on the Canadian situation both from at home and abroad.
Table of Contents:
List of Tables and Figures
Notes on Contributors
Introduction
A Brief Introduction to Electoral Reform
Heather Maclvor
Part I
Proposals for Reforming the Canadian Electoral System
The Case for Proportional Representation in Canada
Henry Milner
How to Renew Canadian Democracy: PR for the Commons, FPTP
Elections for the Senate, and Political Financing by Individuals Only
Tom Kent
New Challenges Demand New Thinking about our Antiquated Electoral System
Lawrence LeDuc
MMP is Too Much of Some Good Things
Kent Weaver
The Alternative Vote: An Electoral System for Canada
Tom Flanagan
Electoral Reform and Canada's Parties
John C. Courtney
Electoral Reform is not as Simple as it Looks
Richard S. Katz
Part II
Electoral Reform in Canada in Historical and Geographical Context
The History of Voting System Reform in Canada
Dennis Pilon
Will Canada Seriously Consider Electoral System Reform? Women and Aboriginals Should
Donley Studlar
Electing Representative Legislatures: Lessons from New Zealand
Therese Arseneau
From Westminster Plurality to Continental Proportionality: Electoral System Change in New Zealand
Peter Aimer
The Defects of Its Virtues: New Zealand's Experience with MMP
Jack H. Nagel
Electoral System Reform in the United Kingdom
Andrew Reynolds
This Time Let the Voters Decide: The Proportional Representation Movement in the United States
Rob Richie and Steven Hill
Appendix: Electoral Systems in the Democratic World
Bibliography
About the Author :
Henry Milner teaches political science at Vanier College, is an adjunct professor at Laval, a visiting fellow at Queen's, and co-editor of Inroads. He has studied electoral reform in New Zealand and published extensively on Scandinavian institutions.
Review :
This clear, crisply written, and well-rounded book will be a handy reference guide to those following what has become an important debate in contemporary Canadian politics.
- American Review of Canadian Studies
