[ISL] Two links on the Prince Edward Island electoral reform referendum
There has been not a little discussion among my Facebook friends about the results of this month's electoral reform referendum on Prince Edward Island returned a majority of votes in favour of reform on the basis of only a minority of voters participating.
MacLean's shared the Canadian Press report on the outcome of the vote.
A non-binding plebiscite on electoral reform in Prince Edward Island has shown voters support a switch to a form of proportional representation.
[. . .]
Islanders were given five options to chose from, including an option to keep the current first-past-the-post system. Voters were asked to rank some or all of the options on a one-to-five scale.
If no electoral system received more than half the votes, the option with the fewest votes was eliminated and those ballots redistributed to their second-choice option.
That process was repeated until one option passed the 50 per cent threshold to achieve majority support.
On the fifth round of counting, mixed member proportional representation obtained 19,418 votes, or more than 52 per cent of the 37,040 valid votes. The existing system received close to 43 per cent of votes in the final round.
CBC, meanwhile, noted that the low turnout may be encouraging the government to disregard the outcome.
The low turnout for Prince Edward Island's plebiscite on electoral reform - 36 per cent - means it's debatable whether the results can be considered a clear expression of the will of Islanders, Premier Wade MacLauchlan said Tuesday.
The premier said the results confirmed the need for the legislature to "enhance our democracy," but he did not commit to making any changes to the existing first-past-the-post system, even though it was rejected as the best option after 10 days of online and telephone voting wrapped up late Monday.
"We certainly won't ignore (the plebiscite)," MacLauchlan said in an interview. "This has been a major exercise in democracy for our province ... The ongoing dialogue is a continuing process. We are absolutely taking to heart the plebiscite and the results."
[. . .]
In the end, the mixed-member proportional representation system garnered more than 52 per cent of the votes, once the votes for the other options were redistributed according to the rules of preferential voting. The first-past-the-post system received close to 43 per cent of votes in the final round.
We will see what happens. Myself, I think it would be worth going ahead. This proposal could easily improve the quality of democracy on the Island, perhaps even elsewhere if this example catches on.
MacLean's shared the Canadian Press report on the outcome of the vote.
A non-binding plebiscite on electoral reform in Prince Edward Island has shown voters support a switch to a form of proportional representation.
[. . .]
Islanders were given five options to chose from, including an option to keep the current first-past-the-post system. Voters were asked to rank some or all of the options on a one-to-five scale.
If no electoral system received more than half the votes, the option with the fewest votes was eliminated and those ballots redistributed to their second-choice option.
That process was repeated until one option passed the 50 per cent threshold to achieve majority support.
On the fifth round of counting, mixed member proportional representation obtained 19,418 votes, or more than 52 per cent of the 37,040 valid votes. The existing system received close to 43 per cent of votes in the final round.
CBC, meanwhile, noted that the low turnout may be encouraging the government to disregard the outcome.
The low turnout for Prince Edward Island's plebiscite on electoral reform - 36 per cent - means it's debatable whether the results can be considered a clear expression of the will of Islanders, Premier Wade MacLauchlan said Tuesday.
The premier said the results confirmed the need for the legislature to "enhance our democracy," but he did not commit to making any changes to the existing first-past-the-post system, even though it was rejected as the best option after 10 days of online and telephone voting wrapped up late Monday.
"We certainly won't ignore (the plebiscite)," MacLauchlan said in an interview. "This has been a major exercise in democracy for our province ... The ongoing dialogue is a continuing process. We are absolutely taking to heart the plebiscite and the results."
[. . .]
In the end, the mixed-member proportional representation system garnered more than 52 per cent of the votes, once the votes for the other options were redistributed according to the rules of preferential voting. The first-past-the-post system received close to 43 per cent of votes in the final round.
We will see what happens. Myself, I think it would be worth going ahead. This proposal could easily improve the quality of democracy on the Island, perhaps even elsewhere if this example catches on.