@RichardJMurphy A minority of the electorate voted for 14 years of #Tory chaos and indeed for Cameron's disastrous #Brexit gamble. Rightwing policy is destroying the disUK, which desperately needs ethical, climate-friendly politics of cooperation, compassion and reason.
The only person who is in a position to change this pattern is #Starmer by introducing a form of #ProportionalRepresentation, so that the left (as opposed to #Labour) has a voice.
I totally understand. I am a Canuck who lived in the USA from 1995-2003. I returned to home because I could see where the country was going. Now I’m relocating to Colombia because:
I cannot afford to live in my own country.
The medical system is being privatised. (My wife lost her doctor years ago and will never have another.)
Trudeau killed #ProportionalRepresentation and as a result, a hard right asshole (Poilievre) is likely to win a majority.
(my previous go-to video was by the inimitable CGP Grey, and it's still great if you want more details about the mechanics of STV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8XOZJkozfI)
"He was vowing to replace Canada’s electoral system, which tended to give parties power disproportionate to their level of support"
PR advocates believe that each party should have a number of MPs proportionate to the votes that party has received; but the relationship between power and proportion of MPs is inherently nonlinear.
(Those models neglect that in some matters an assembly may require an enhanced majority, say 2/3 or unanimity. Also members of an assembly need not vote en bloc.)
#ProportionalRepresentation necessarily leads to party power disproportionate to level of popular support. As a consequence, we must evaluate the merits of electoral systems on other criteria.
@mpjgregoire Interesting point, but I think you're missing the fact that parties are not simply interchangeable. E.g. if party A is centrist, party B is far-right and party C is far-left, it's unlikely that B and C will cooperate to defeat A. Ok, it's not just left/right, but parties will tend to cooperate with others whose policies are similar. Also voters will tend to shift between like-minded parties, so in general, popular policies are likely to be implemented. #proportionalrepresentation
Hmmm... is the UK's political system, that has for so long offered an advantage to the Tories about to cause them major damage?
Certainly, fragmenting parties are not served well by FPTP & if such a fragmentation is underway on the right, we may soon see an expanded interest in proportional representation & voting reform coming from the rump Tories & their political competitors;
how will that be received by mainstream PR enthusiasts?
"In 1998, the House of Commons debated Roy Jenkins's report on proportional representation. Tony Benn rose to oppose it. 'Introducing proportionality completely destroys the idea of representation', Benn told MPs."
"You might have had [Nigel Farage] in Parliament [if UK elections used Proportional Representation], but I think what would have happened is the more you would have actually looked at [UKIP] policies, rather than his, kind of, martyred self-image on the outside of Parliament, you might just find that actually some of his popularity went down."
If you support proportional representation then you might want to sign this petition that is asking the Labour Parry to prioritise voting reform in government.
While PR is not a sufficient change to transform UK politics for the better it is certainly a necessary element.
Signing won't take you long & who knows perhaps Keir Starmer & his team might listen...
Yesterday the Fair Representation Act was re-introduced in Congress! This reform will stop gerrymandering and make the House of Representatives more competitive and more responsive to voters.
The #Tory government demonises minorities and the vulnerable, supports murderous regimes, encourages racism and suppresses peaceful protest. The nasty party? It sounds more like the Nazi party to me.
Sunak is now complaining about so-called mob rule. Well, so am I! After 14 years of this criminal, self-serving mob ruling the country I've really had enough.
We need to get the #ToriesOut, and get #ProportionalRepresentation in, so we can move forward with a less divided and more caring society, and a country that works for everyone.
New video from @CBCNews about the need for #ProportionalRepresentation in Canada, and why it matters so much for younger voters. It's disappointing, but no surprise that the two major parties didn't support the proposed #CitizensAssembly, and of course no sign that #JustinTrudeau will change course on his broken campaign promise to support #ElectoralReform.
Video: "Electoral reform didn’t happen. What it means for your vote"
The thing with independent redistricting commissions is that there can be a big difference between "nonpartisan" and "bipartisan". The one in #WashingtonState is "bipartisan" which means the people on the commission are mainly interested in preserving incumbents on both sides.
Ultimately, though, it's a fool's errand to think single-member districts will ever be truly competitive and reflective of the public's diverse views. We need #ProportionalRepresentation instead.
I don't see Poilievere being much of a bridge builder as prime minister with different levels of government in Canada. No matter how his handlers and PR machine try to massage his public persona, his fundamental inner asshole keeps coming to the foreground, as it did with his attack on Quebec mayors this week. For him, every issue boils down to who to attack and how to enrage his base. He'll still likely win, and it will be a painful lesson for Canadian voters. #cdnpoli
Polly is almost certainly a sociopath with no conscience - and no ability to care about anyone but himself. It will be very bad news if and when he takes power - which the corrupt Liberals could have and still could prevent by implementing #ProportionalRepresentation. But they won’t, because they care more about power than Canada, too.
"For him, every issue boils down to who to attack and how to enrage his base.”
100%. Unfortunately, our political parties are committed to ‘market solutions’ because they are corporate, ah, cronies, to use a nice word. Implement #ProportionalRepresentation and the housing crisis will be solved by building social housing and co-ops. But, they won’t do that, either, because they are corporate cronies.
"the most obvious problem is the #HousingCrisis; we need to build more houses as well as to restore our immigration system.”
Warning - stepping onto the soapbox...
Yesterday I posted about electoral reform snf the risk of a minority of Canadians electing #PeePee, who is wholly unfit for office. I recall a presentation by Fair Vote Canada that stressed proportional representation is critical to solve all Canadian challenges, without the risk of sliding backwards if we elect the wrong person. That was echoed by @zazzoo and mattwelke@mstdn.ca in responses to my post. https://mstdn.ca/@paulbusch/111744980354454512 #CanPoli#ElectoralReform
@paulbusch While it's true that #ProportionalRepresentation might give the #Conservatives more seats than the #Liberals in the next election, it would virtually rule out #PeePee getting a majority so he couldn't do any serious damage. Any legislation would need cross-party support.
I may be cynical but I believe @justintrudeau reneged because he couldn't get his preferred #RankedBallot alternative to fly, which would be a clear advantage to his party in the current political climate. #cdnpoli
A good way to remember Ed Broadbent would be to promote electoral reform so everyone’s vote counts. A better way would be to implement it. #proportionalrepresentation#edbroadbent
"Trudeau’s “sunny ways” and nerd-dad version of politics lost its charm slowly and then suddenly — tested year after year by scandals and predictable fracture points in Canadian politics, such as Quebec wedge issues and culture wars around energy, only to disintegrate more decisively thanks to an inflation crisis that opened the way for an Angry Man alternative."
Trudeau and the Liberals are deservedly down in the polls because they lied about many, many things - and they are obviously corporate cronies. They could have solved numerous problems like housing affordability but their corporate masters don’t want that. They promised #ProportionalRepresentation - which would prevent Poilievre and the CPC from forming government, but would rather roll the dice.
Screw the Liberals, they are not good or decent people.