Canada has built itself an electoral system that can proudly hold up as a model of democracy. Increasingly, however, there are indications that this model is seriously flawed.
Given the number of political parties, the system of ‘first past the post’ does not accurately reflect the will of the people as expressed in the number of seats a party may receive in parliament.
Canada has just had an election. The City of Lethbridge, the United States and the Province of Alberta will hold elections in October and November, respectively – and within a year or so Canada may possibly have another election. Now is a good time to assess what renovations are required to build a better electoral system.
Speaker: John Gogo is a former member of the Alberta Legislature who participated in five elections as an undefeated candidate. He is a former Deputy speaker of the Legislature and Minister, Advanced Education and Chair of AADAC for seven years, among other community service activities.