Making Every Vote Count: Reassessing Canada's Electoral System

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