Later in June, Vote PR BC launched their campaign for proportional representation, canvassing in cities across the province.
(meta data) TITLE: Campaign to change B.C. voting system hits the streets, with Ontario election in mind | The Star (meta data) AUTHOR: Perrin Grauer (meta data) PUBLISHER: https://www.facebook.com/torontostar 7 captures 12 Jun 2018 - 09 Nov 2020 About this capture COLLECTED BY Organization: Internet Archive These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved. Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors. The goal is to fix all broken links on the web. Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. 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To order presentation-ready copies of Toronto Star content for distribution to colleagues, clients or customers, or inquire about permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com # Campaign to change B.C. voting system hits the streets, with Ontario election in mind By Perrin GrauerStarMetro VancouverSun., June 10, 2018 VANCOUVER—Supporters of the proportional representation (PR) voting system hit the streets in Vancouver and around the province on Sunday to talk democracy and raise awareness ahead of B.C.'s electoral referendum in the fall. Maria Dobrinskaya, spokesperson for the Vote PR BC campaign, said the results from last week's provincial election in Ontario show that the conversation around PR has never been more timely. Volunteers with the Vote PR BC campaign chat with locals outside the Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain station in Vancouver on Sunday to promote awareness of proportional representation. (Perrin Grauer / StarMetro)A referendum on whether to adopt the proportional representation electoral system — or stick with the current first-past-the-post method — is expected for October or November of this year. (Perrin Grauer / StarMetro) "I think dissatisfaction with our current system is palpable," she told StarMetro outside the Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain station. "The example of the election in Ontario … where the majority of people voted for a different party than the one that was elected makes the issue real." On June 7, Doug Ford — a populist candidate many have compared to Donald Trump — won Ontario's provincial election with 40 per cent of the vote. Proportional representation, Dobrinskaya said, is a system of voting that ensures the number of votes cast is reflected in the number of seats in the legislature. If a party receives 40 per cent of the votes, as Ford's Conservatives did, it would receive 40 per cent of the seats. Article Continued Below "Our current system distorts that outcome, so we're able to elect majority governments that have 100 per cent of the power — the legislative agenda — with 40, sometimes event lower, per cent of the vote," she said. The upcoming mail-in referendum, expected to start this October, will ask British Columbians to decide on whether to keep the current first-past-the-post electoral system, or switch over to one of three PR systems. In his May 30 report on electoral reform, Attorney General David Eby recommended that if PR is chosen in the upcoming referendum, B.C. voters should be given an opportunity for a second referendum after two election cycles. Dobrinskaya said this would provide residents with a chance to see how PR works in real-time, at the ballot box, before deciding to adopt the system permanently — though she was sure voters would embrace PR once they'd seen it in action. "We have not seen any jurisdiction move to a proportional representation system and then revert back to first-past-the-post," she said. Roughly 85 per cent of countries belonging to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) currently use some form of proportional representation, according to an ACE Electoral Knowledge Network database. But the PR system is not without its flaws. It can lead to the rise of coalition governments, resulting in "legislative gridlock and (a) consequent inability to carry out coherent policies," notes the ACE Electoral Knowledge Network. Article Continued Below The ACE network also writes that PR can fragment the party system, allowing "tiny minority parties to hold larger parties to ransom in coalition negotiations." In Israel, for instance, this has led to extremist religious parties becoming crucial to the formation of government, while in Italy PR has led to years of political instability. But Attorney General Eby's electoral report explicitly states any party must win a minimum 5 per cent of the overall vote in order to be eligible to receive seats in an election — a move designed to deter the influence of fringe parties. And in comparison to the current system, said Dobrinskaya, a representative plurality of voices would reinvigorate those members of the B.C. electorate who have become soured on politics. She said the phenomenon of "safe seats" — ridings in which voters are so historically likely to vote for a particular party that opposition candidates have very narrow odds of being elected — has created an environment in which many voters feel disempowered. "If you're a B.C. NDP voter in Kelowna, or a B.C. Liberal voter in Vancouver-Mount Pleasant, the outcome of the election is largely determined (regardless of) whether or not you cast your ballot," she said. "That leads to a lot of cynicism and disengagement, particularly amongst younger people." Strategic voting — a situation Dobrinskaya said many voters know better as "plugging your nose and voting for the least worst option" — is another problem with the current first-past-the-post system that could be eliminated by embracing a PR system. "A combination of distorted outcomes, safe seats and strategic voting makes a lot of people feel that their vote doesn't count, and their level of engagement in their democracy is reflected in that," she said. "We see lower voter turnout, and a general disengagement, again, particularly amongst young people." Vancouver resident and former Calgarian Igor Kopecky told StarMetro he had friends abroad in countries where PR was currently in use, and felt the system simply made better sense than first-past-the-post. "It just sounds logical to me," he said. Kopecky said in his former hometown of Calgary, NDP, Liberal and Green voters are often left feeling their democratic participation has little impact given the dominance of Conservative politics in the region. "Whereas I think proportional representation, in every situation, would be impactful," he said, adding for that reason, he'll be casting his ballot in the fall referendum. "I'll be voting in October," he said. "Not for first-past-the-post." Perrin Grauer is a Vancouver-based reporter. Follow him on Twitter: @perringrauer ### More from The Star & Partners ## LOADING NoticesMore Sections (meta data) TITLE:  Canvassers take case for B.C. electoral reform to commuters | Vancouver Sun  (meta data) PUBLISHER: http://www.facebook.com/Vancouversun 7 captures 12 Jun 2018 - 29 Sep 2020 About this capture COLLECTED BY Organization: Internet Archive These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved. Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors. The goal is to fix all broken links on the web. Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. Collection: Wikipedia Near Real Time (from IRC) This is a collection of web page captures from links added to, or changed on, Wikipedia pages. The idea is to bring a reliability to Wikipedia outlinks so that if the pages referenced by Wikipedia articles are changed, or go away, a reader can permanently find what was originally referred to. This is part of the Internet Archive's attempt to rid the web of broken links. The Wayback Machine - https://web.archive.org/web/20180612140431/http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/canvassers-take-case-for-b-c-electoral-reform-to-commuters Skip to navigation Skip to content Open Search Sign In Sign Out Local News #### DNA privacy questioned as police nab suspects by searching family ... Local News #### Fired UBC prof Steven Galloway awarded damages in arbitration Local News #### B.C.-based A&W eliminating plastic straws from restaurants #### Anthony Bourdain 'changed our lives,' says Vij's Local News #### Dealing with Surrey's violence: More police are on the streets ... 5 / 5 # Canvassers take case for B.C. electoral reform to commuters Denise Ryan Updated: June 10, 2018 Romeo Tello of Vote PR B.C. canvasses for support of proportional representation Sunday at the Broadway SkyTrain station in Vancouver. Nick Procaylo / PNG As proponents of electoral reform passed leaflets and prepared to fan out and lobby Italian Day celebrants, Paul Bassett leaned up against an East Van coffee shop window, unimpressed. "I'm not interested," he said, dryly, as he watched Vote PR advocates launch their "Yes" campaign Sunday with a flurry of activity at the corner of Commercial and Broadway. "I don't have time to think about this right now." But that doesn't mean he isn't willing to consider the questions that will be on the proportional representation referendum ballot B.C. voters will receive in their mailboxes in October. Bassett said he thinks electoral reform is important but he believes proportional representation could make things worse for small-town and rural residents. "If you have a government that's run by Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, the larger centres, the fate of rural communities will be decided by these cities." His friend Ann Buckerfield, on the other hand, is very interested, and she plans to vote in the fall referendum on the issue. "I'm going to look into it and learn more to see if I want to support it," said Buckerfield. "I think it's important." Nearby, Shai Mor, who was also approached by the blue-clad PR proponents, said he cares deeply about the issue. "One person, one vote, and each vote influences the final tally. It's the most common system out there. First past the post is not working." Mor, who was born in Israel, said proportional representation is an effective system, already in place in that country. B.C.'s NDP government is fulfilling an election promise to put the question of electoral reform before provincial voters with a referendum to be held this fall. The mail-in ballot will determine whether B.C. should keep its current "first past the post" system, or introduce some form of proportional representation. Proportional representation is designed to ensure that the number of representatives in the legislature is proportional to the number of votes each party gets. Vote PR B.C. spokeswoman Maria Dobrinskaya says 'all voters deserve to have their position represented in the legislature more so than it is now.' Nick Procaylo / "Currently we have a system in which a party with 40 per cent of the vote can get 100 per cent of the power, and can control government," said Maria Dobrinskaya, a spokeswoman for Vote PR B.C. "It's frustrating for people to feel their vote doesn't count. We see distorted outcomes in which a majority government doesn't have the support of the majority of the population." Dobrinskaya said, "All voters deserve to have their position represented in the legislature more so than it is now." Attorney General David Eby has proposed a mail-in vote with two questions. The first will ask whether voters prefer the current system, or a system of proportional representation. The second question will ask voters to rank which of three systems they prefer, dual-member, mixed-member (the most common) or rural-urban representation. Voters can answer one or both of the questions. Ballots will be available in October 2018, and voters will have until the end of November to submit their ballots. New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, Italy, Israel, Belgium, Denmark and Russia all use some form of proportional representation in their election process. ## Related Slim majority of British Columbians support proportional representation: PollB.C. government releases details on electoral reform referendum CLICK HERE to report a typo. Is there more to this story? We'd like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com You might also like: British Columbia Politics Elections and Voting electoral system Proportional Representation Rob Shaw: NDP's handling of email deletion controversy falls short Swanson seeks COPE council nod, offers tissues to 'mansion tax' critics ## This Week's Flyers ## Comments We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. 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2018 British Columbia electoral reform referendum
Consultation and implementation.
Between November 2017 and February 2018, Attorney General David Eby conducted a public consultation entitled "How We Vote". On May 30, 2018, he released the report on the consultation and recommendations concerning how the referendum process should be conducted. Cabinet accepted the recommendations shortly thereafter, in early June.