The percentage of eligible voters in this year’s provincial election was an all time low of 43%. A number of reasons for the low turnout have been cited, including people being happy with the status quo, lack of enthusiasm for the Liberal and NDP leaders and lacklustre campaigns by the opposition parties. However, it seems that more and more potential voters are simply apathetic about politics.
One antidote to voter apathy is the idea of lowering the voting age to 16. Giving young people the opportunity to vote would hopefully start them on a lifelong interest in participating in the electoral process. After all, the young people will be the ones who will have to deal with the future fallout from the political decisions that are being made today.
One youth advocate is Hannah Baillie. Hannah is a member of the Young Canadians Roundtable on Health, which supports Vote 16. In a guest blog posted by Fair Vote Canada, Hannah points out that several young people have made their voices heard on the world stage. Notably, Greta Thunberg has mobilized youth to push governments to fight climate change and Malala Yousafzai won the Nobel Prize at age 17 for her work advocating for girls’ education rights.
Hannah quotes Dr. Daniel Bierstone, an Ontario-based pediatrician, who is an advocate for youth enfranchisement. Dr. Bierstone points out that, “By and large there is no age of consent for medical treatment in Canada, which means that an individual under the age of 18 is presumed to be capable of making decisions about his or her own medical care… if youth can make their own healthcare decisions, why should they be deemed incapable of engaging in the voting process?”
Hannah points out that it is not just future problems that today’s youth face. Since young people are affected today by the housing crisis, recessions and long wait times for health care, it only makes sense to give them a say in how these issues are addressed.
For over 30 years, there have been a succession of private members bills in the House of Commons advocating dropping the voting age to 16. So far, none have succeeded. In her blog, Hannah notes that Marilou McPhedron, an Independent Senator, has presented Bill c-201 aimed at lowering the voting age to 16. Senator McPhedron’s initiative was taken up by MP Taylor Bachrach who introduced Bill C-210 in the House of Commons. Bill C-210 is currently in second reading as of September 23.
As well, Hannah notes that 13 youth have filed an application to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice seeking to lower the voting age in Canada. Their application is supported by groups such as Children First Canada, Justice for Children and Youth, and the David Asper Centre for Constitutional Rights, who believe that a voting age of 18 is unconstitutional and a violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Hannah’s group, Young Canadians Roundtable on Health, is the latest organization to support the court challenge.
Read Hannah’s guest blog by clicking here.
Pierre Poilievre’s election shows how easily an extremist could win power with first past the post
In a nation with first past the post, the direct appeals Pierre Poilievre made to those on the extremes should scare the heck out of us. A look at our neighbour to the south gives us an idea of what could be coming: a sharply divided nation where “the truth” splits along partisan lines.
Extremists, polarization and first-past-the-post
Politicians with extreme political views and voters who support those views exist in every country, regardless of the electoral system.
The difference between winner-take-all systems and proportional systems is in how those voters are represented in Parliament and how much influence over government policy the politicians they elect may have. In a nutshell, a proportional system tends to moderate the impact of extremist politicians.
UK Labour Party endorses proportional representation
For 100 years, the Conservatives and the Labour Party have dominated British politics, benefitting from massive seat bonuses awarded by first past the post. 90% of the time since 1935 the UK has had single-party “majority” governments, but none have had the support of a majority of voters.
Read the motion approved at the UK Labour Party convention by clicking here.
What’s behind Italy’s infamous instability?
Italy might be heading for an election eight months ahead of schedule, but the country’s rate of early elections is actually on a par with Britain – the average parliament sitting for just three-quarters of its maximum term.
Any serious analysis of Italian politics over the last few decades, particularly considering its several major electoral reforms, could not come to the conclusion that it is PR that is to blame for Italy’s infamous instability. National political culture and behaviour of political parties are far more responsible for how unstable Itay’s politics is.
Democratic Reform in the News
Electoral reform continues to make the news across Canada and around the world. Here is a sample of what is being said:
- Canadians should pay attention to the democratic crisis in America
- Anger, delusion and distrust: Is Canada’s democracy in decline?
- We can steer politicians away from hyper-partisanship