As you’ve likely heard, the results of the BC referendum on electoral reform are in, and British Columbians have voted to keep first-past-the-post. I was disappointed to hear the results, as I’m sure you were. I’m heartened, however, by the energy and momentum that has been harnessed by pro-reform organizers in BC, and hopeful that we can channel that energy into a stronger movement for proportional representation in Canada. 

One of the goals of the Charter Challenge for Fair Voting is to have the Supreme Court of Canada order the government to develop a voting system that is compliant with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. 

This post introduces the types of voting systems that exist around the world, including the systems that would be strong candidates to replace the first-past-the-post voting system, if the Court were to call for its replacement. 

There are nearly as many voting systems as there are countries in the world, all with their own strengths and weaknesses. In this post, I’ll share some of the basics about what each system looks like in one spot. 

Here's the latest update on the Charter Challenge for Fair Voting. 

In our last update to you we shared: 
- that we'd raised just under $43,000 to support the Charter Challenge for Fair Voting 
- that we would share another update once once we'd retained legal counsel for the case 

Here's where things are at now: 

It's been two-and-a-half months since the House of Commons last met. Electoral reform is officially no-longer part of the Trudeau government's agenda, but there have been some quiet developments on the electoral reform file nonetheless. 

At the time of writing, 426 Canadians have donated $42,998 to bring this case to court! 

Update: the vote described below failed. On May 31st, 159 MPs voted against the motion supporting the recommendations of the special committee on electoral reform, and just 146 MPs voted in favour of it.   

On May 31st, members of parliament (MPs) will have one more chance to move forward on electoral reform. On Wednesday, MPs will vote on whether to accept the recommendations of the report from the House of Commons special committee on electoral reform. If that doesn't happen there is only one logical option for supporters of voter-right's. 

Anyone who watched the 2015 film, Selma, about the civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery in 1965 will not have missed the point where the African-Americans demand that the government fully implement and enforce their right to vote. It generated significant opposition from the whites who controlled the existing exclusive and power-concentrating system.  And though black voting rights continue to be attacked in the US, few would argue that such rights exist and ought not to be proactively honoured.