Snowed in? Blame First Past the Post

blame first past the post for the toronto snowmageddon

It seems to surprise us every year, yet, here we are. It snowed in Toronto.

Social media was awash with stuck cars, abandoned buses and people wading through mounds of snow that are still yet to be cleared over a week later.

Of course, our Premier made the most of this unfolding disaster by valiantly driving around his riding digging out stuck drivers and doing media interviews in what has to be one of the best examples of the folly of our winner-take-all electoral system we’ve seen in a while.

We know from other cities that don’t shut down every time it snows that the technology and infrastructure is there to prevent these disasters from occurring. Yet, to do so requires long-term sustainable investment in these improvements, something Ontario’s governing parties have long been reluctant to do.

Why? Because our winner-take-all electoral system promotes this kind of behaviour from our leaders.

Why try to make things better in the long-term when by the next election cycle another party could be in charge with 40% of the vote and be able to reap all the praise?

That’s why it’s more politically beneficial for Ford to be seen digging cars out of snow banks and “doing something” as opposed to actually investing in improvements that would prevent people from getting stuck in the first place.

This lack of investment doesn’t just apply to snow. Take healthcare and education, two issues that have been in the spotlight recently as the chronic lack of investment in both has led us into our ongoing covid mess. It’s time Ontarians embraced a way to move our province forward.

Under proportional representation, parties will be incentivized to work together to improve and expand what was done before instead of ripping up whatever plan the previous government implemented. This would protect us against the constant lurches in investment that happens when we swing from one governing party to the next.

So, next time you’re stuck in snow waiting for the Premier to dig you out, just remember you’re only there due to First Past the Post!


Fair Vote Canada at GreenPac’s FLIP Summit

greenpac flip summit with dolly cepeda montufar hugh segal anna keenan

The potential impact of electoral reform on the environment was heavily discussed this past weekend at GreenPac’s Future Leaders in Politics (FLIP) Summit. Dolly Cepeda Montufar, Fair Vote Canada National Board Member, took part in the ‘Making Every Vote for the Environment Count’ panel discussion where she was joined by Hugh Segal, former Senator of Canada, Anna Keenan, Green Party Democratic Reform Critic, Sonia Théroux, Executive Director of Leadnow, and moderator Alejandra Bravo, Broadbent Institute, as they explored the impact of the electoral system on environmental progress.

“People want aggressive climate action but they’ll vote for a party that doesn’t have that out of fear of electing a party they consider worse,” Cepeda Montufar said. “With proportional representation you’re not afraid that your vote isn’t going to elect anyone. You’re more free to actually choose what you want and not feel like you’re wasting your vote.”


Ryerson Democracy Forum Presentation | January 25th, 4:00pm

who can defeat doug ford talk with ontario NDP Liberal Green party leaders

Today at 4:00pm EST, Ryerson Democracy Forum will be hosting Andrea Horwath, Steven Del Duca and Mike Schreiner for a discussion on their strategies for the June 2nd election.

It’s an excellent opportunity to remind our leaders that if they’re serious about party cooperation, they must support Proportional Representation!

We invite everyone to attend the event and emphasize a couple points:

  • A citizens’ assembly is the best practice for making decisions like this, but it must come before the decision. A CA won’t be of any use when it comes after the Liberals implement their preferred system.
  • As single-member ranked ballots benefit the Liberals, it looks like Del Duca wants to unilaterally change the system to ensure his party wins more seats.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Click here to register >


Donate Today: Help us stop Del Duca’s ranked ballot power grab

ranked ballots benefit the liberals

We need your help to get the message out that winner-take-all ranked ballots are not proportional! Canadians want fair results and cooperative government—not another power grab.

Your generous donation will help ensure we have the resources to reach more people and to pressure our political parties for real reform and voter equality.

Click here to chip in >


Democratic Reform in the News

Electoral reform continues to make the news as more Canadians wake up to the sorry state of our democracy. Here is a sample of what is being said:


fair vote toronto proportional representation electoral reform canada volunteer rendezvous

67% of democratic countries around the world use proportional representation or mixed systems (mixed systems can be fully or partially proportional). Among OECD countries the number is even higher — over 80% use proportional representation.

WHICH ELECTORAL SYSTEM DO DEMOCRACIES PREFER