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In June 2016, the Federal Government Created the Special Parliamentary ]] In June 2016, the federal government created the Special Parliamentary Committee on Electoral Reform (ERRE) to identify and conduct a study of viable alternate voting systems to replace the first-past-the-post system, as well as to examine mandatory voting and online voting. We were hardly the first group of Canadian parliamentarians to have been tasked with examining our “winner-take-all” voting system to consider its flaws. The first committee met in 1921. That committee concluded that first-past-the-post was not a viable system for any democracy with more than two parties. Ever since the 1920s, Canada's federal parliament has had a minimum of three parties, and often as many as five or six. FPTP delivers skewed results in which "majority governments" are elected by a minority of the voters. Since then, more than a dozen efforts, provincial and federal, citizen assemblies and law commissions have all recommended that the quality of our democracy, the requirements of fairness will be better served once First Past the Post (FPTP) is gone and we move to a proportional voting system. As a team of 12 MPs from all five parties in the House of Commons, with a superb staff from House clerks to Library of Parliament analysts, we set records and broke new ground in consultations. With the advent of e-consultation, ERRE pioneered public input by online questionnaire. It was not an easy or quick process, and not entirely user-friendly, yet 20,000 people used that method to reach us. In addition, thousands more submitted briefs or letters. Hundreds attended our hearings in person, stepping up to an open mic to make their case. We took questions on Twitter. The input of hundreds of MP town halls also came to us. We held hearings in 19 locations, in every province and territory. We heard from hundreds of expert witnesses in political science, constitutional law and electoral systems as well as those with expertise in the challenges of voting for persons with disabilities, the poor and groups underrepresented in Parliament: women, minorities, indigenous persons. The submitted report, Strengthening Democracy in Canada: Principles, Process, and Public Engagement for Electoral Reform, was the result of this committee’s work. I hope that it may be of use as the province of British Columbia considers electoral reform. Sincerely, Elizabeth May, O.C. Member of Parliament Saanich-Gulf Islands Leader of the Green Party of Canada STRENGTHENING DEMOCRACY IN CANADA: PRINCIPLES, PROCESS AND PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT FOR ELECTORAL REFORM Report of the Special Committee on Electoral Reform Francis Scarpaleggia Chair DECEMBER 2016 42nd PARLIAMENT, 1st SESSION Published under the authority of the Speaker of the House of Commons SPEAKER’S PERMISSION Reproduction of the proceedings of the House of Commons and its Committees, in whole or in part and in any medium, is hereby permitted provided that the reproduction is accurate and is not presented as official. This permission does not extend to reproduction, distribution or use for commercial purpose of financial gain. Reproduction or use outside this permission or without authorization may be treated as copyright infringement in accordance with the Copyright Act. Authorization may be obtained on written application to the Office of the Speaker of the House of Commons. Reproduction in accordance with this permission does not constitute publication under the authority of the House of Commons. The absolute privilege that applies to the proceedings of the House of Commons does not extend to these permitted reproductions. Where a reproduction includes briefs to a Standing Committee of the House of Commons, authorization for reproduction may be required from the authors in accordance with the Copyright Act. Nothing in this permission abrogates or derogates from the privileges, powers, immunities and rights of the House of Commons and its Committees. For greater certainty, this permission does not affect the prohibition against impeaching or questioning the proceedings of the House of Commons in courts or otherwise. The House of Commons retains the right and privilege to find users in contempt of Parliament if a reproduction or use is not in accordance with this permission. Also available on the Parliament of Canada Web Site at the following address: http://www.parl.gc.ca STRENGTHENING DEMOCRACY IN CANADA: PRINCIPLES, PROCESS AND PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT FOR ELECTORAL REFORM Report of the Special Committee on Electoral Reform Francis Scarpaleggia Chair DECEMBER 2016 42nd PARLIAMENT, 1st SESSION SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON ELECTORAL REFORM CHAIR Francis Scarpaleggia VICE-CHAIRS Scott Reid Nathan Cullen MEMBERS John Aldag Blake Richards Alexandre Boulerice Sherry Romanado Matt DeCourcey Ruby Sahota Gérard Deltell Luc Thériault Elizabeth May OTHER MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT WHO PARTICIPATED William Amos Georgina Jolibois Sheri Benson Pat Kelly Daniel Blaikie Hon. Jason Kenney Mike Bossio Tom Kmiec Sylvie Boucher Larry Maguire David Christopherson Alistair MacGregor Matthew Dubé David J. McGuinty Jim Eglinski John Nater Greg Fergus Monique Pauzé Colin Fraser Alain Rayes Bernard Généreux Hon. Michelle Rempel Garnett Genuis Brigitte Sansoucy David de Burgh Graham Gabriel Ste-Marie Jamie Schmale iii CLERKS OF THE COMMITTEE Christine Lafrance Danielle Widmer LIBRARY OF PARLIAMENT Parliamentary Information and Research Service Dara Lithwick, Analyst Erin Virgint, Analyst Gabrielle de Billy Brown, Research Assistant Jessica Ozorak, Research Assistant COMMITTEES AND LEGISLATIVE SERVICES DIRECTORATE Ariann Bouchard, Committee Assistant Lynda Gaudreault, Committee Assistant iv THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON ELECTORAL REFORM has the honour to present its THIRD REPORT Pursuant to the order of reference of Tuesday, June 7, 2016, the Committee has studied the question of voting systems to replace the first-past-the-post system and the questions of mandatory voting and online voting and has agreed to report the following: v TABLE OF CONTENTS STRENGTHENING DEMOCRACY IN CANADA: PRINCIPLES, PROCESS AND PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT FOR ELECTORAL REFORM .................................................. 1 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 A. Electoral Reform and Canada’s Unique Democratic Ecosystem .......................... 1 B. The Committee’s Mandate ................................................................................... 3 C. The Committee’s Study in Numbers ..................................................................... 4 1. Formal Hearings .............................................................................................. 5 2. E-Consultation on Electoral Reform ................................................................ 6 3. Open Mic Sessions ......................................................................................... 8 4. Written Submissions and Correspondence ..................................................... 9 5. MP Town Hall Reports .................................................................................... 9 CHAPTER 2: ELECTORAL REFORM AND THE CONSTITUTION .............................. 11 A. Constitutional Basis of the Federal Electoral System and Implications for System Reform ................................................................................................... 11 1. Constitutional Provisions related to the Federal Electoral System and Reform .......................................................................................................... 11 2. Selected Canadian Jurisprudence: Electoral Reform and the Constitution ...... 14 B. Witness and Submission Observations on the Constitutionality of Electoral System Reform ................................................................................................... 15 CHAPTER 3: LESSONS LEARNED: A HISTORY OF ELECTORAL SYSTEM REFORM AT THE FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL LEVELS .......................................................... 21 A. 1921: A Turning Point ......................................................................................... 22 1. The House of Commons 1921 Special Committee on Proportional Representation and the Subject of the Single Transferable or Preferential Vote ........................................................................................... 23 B. Subsequent Studies of Electoral System Reform at the Federal Level .............. 24 1. 1935-1937: The Special Committee on Elections and Franchise Acts .......... 24 2. A Trio of Task Forces/Royal Commissions: 1979, 1985, 1991...................... 24 3. Law Commission of Canada, Voting Counts: Electoral Reform for Canada, 2004 ................................................................................................ 25 4. House of Commons Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, Forty-Third Report (Electoral Reform) (tabled 16 June 2005) ........... 27 vii 5. Government of Canada, Public Consultations on Canada’s Democratic Institutions and Practices, 2007 .................................................................... 28 C. Electoral Reform at the Provincial Level ............................................................. 28 1. Early Reform Initiatives ................................................................................... 28 2. Recent Reform Initiatives ............................................................................... 29 a. British Columbia ......................................................................................
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