The B.C. government is looking for public input on changing our voting system, but, unsurprisingly, it is putting its thumb on the scale. Residents have a chance to give their views on how to structure the referendum on whether to eliminate the first-past-the-post voting system and replace it with a form of proportional representation. However, the NDP government and its Green Party allies have come up with a plan that is weighted against the current system.
As both parties campaigned to scrap first-past-the-post, their positions on electoral reform are clear; the Greens even wanted to impose proportional representation without a referendum.
That’s fair enough, but as British Columbians ponder reforms that will profoundly change the workings of our democracy, they deserve something approaching a balanced process. They didn’t get it from the government.
Last week, Attorney General David Eby released a new government website, engage.gov.bc.ca/HowWeVote, where British Columbians can suggest how to word the ballot or what types of voting systems should be considered.
The window for public engagement closes at 4 p.m. on Feb. 28, 2018. A mail-in referendum will be held by the end of November 2018.
The site has information about five voting systems: first-past-the-post, which is also called single-member plurality; list proportional representation; single transferable vote; mixed-member proportional; and mixed-member majoritarian, which is also called parallel.
The site also has an online questionnaire and a way to provide written submissions. It will soon include written submissions from various groups on the many sides of the issue.
The site tells voters: “Your input will help shape key elements of the referendum, including ballot design, choice of voting systems included, and public funding distribution during the referendum campaign period.”
Some important factors are missing from that list, including: The government has decided that 50 per cent plus one of ballots will be sufficient to decided the matter. Given the significance of the change, the approval threshold should have been one of the factors on which the public could comment.
The votes will be counted across the whole province, with no allowance for regional differences. They won’t be counted by riding.
In the 2009 referendum, acceptance required 60 per cent approval across the province plus 50 per cent approval in 51 out of the 85 ridings. That prevented the Lower Mainland from deciding the issue, which it is likely to do under the new system.
The process for the 2018 referendum will be overseen by four academics, but as Vaughn Palmer of the Vancouver Sun wrote, three of them have advocated proportional representation in the past, and one favours the status quo. That can hardly give confidence that the process is unbiased.
To its credit, the government is going to try to counteract the effects of lobby groups blitzing the consultation process with organized campaigns. It will appoint a larger panel to review the conclusions of the consultation and watch for attempts to stack the feedback.
Eby has made much of his decision to recuse himself from any cabinet or caucus discussions about the referendum so he can remain neutral while his government campaigns in favour of proportional representation. That’s a preposterous position, as his support for proportional representation is clear. Positioning himself as neutral is disingenuous and unnecessary.
B.C. Liberal MLA Andrew Wilkinson said the website is “massively biased” in favour of proportional representation. “Massively” is overstating the case, but the deck is certainly stacked.
Imperfect as the process is, British Columbians must put in the effort to cast an informed vote in the referendum. We can’t afford to leave the decision to others.
