Single Transferable Voting is looked down on as a messy, complicated, slow system.
But I think it is the best form of proportional representation for Canada today.
1. It has already been used successfully in Canada at every level of government except the federal one. Seventeen cities have used it, in more than 150 elections. Two provincial governments used it, in 17 elections.
2. It encourages a range of candidates, thus encourages both male and female candidates in each multi-member district. Thus female candidates, put up in pursuit of tokenism, are not put off to the side in an unattainable district.
3. it is district-level so could be brought in incrementally. Alberta and Manitoba used it in provincial elections only in the major cities. Where it was brought in, it did good and did no harm to the other places. Better to have some of the seats elected through STV than to have none elected that way.
4. It allows both local (city) representation and proportional representation
What does local mean? When a TV channel advertizes local news, it does not promise news just for a sixteenth part of the city- it promises news of the whole city. That is local.
STV even guarantees representation of a particular sub-district. Very local representation is guaranteed if the voters there add up to quota and concentrate their choices on their locality's candidates. This should satisfy those worried about the loss of local representation under multi-member districts.
City representation is local representation. A multi-member districts that covers a whole city provides representation that is local enough. Party-list proportional representation does not provide that kind of local representation.
5. The transferability of STV votes prevents the mass waste of votes that occurs under FPTP (40 to 60 percent in each district) and that often occurs under party-list pro-rep (where any party with less than 5 percent of the votes is often disregarded automatically).
6. It provides mixed representation in each multi-member district so in practical terms Conservatives in Edmonton would not have to look to Calgary Conservative MLAs to present their needs in the legislature; NDP-ers in Calgary would not have to look to Edmonton NDP MLAs to represent them in the legislature. Regionalism would be reduced as members of different parties (if their support is substantial enough) would be elected in every city and any part of the province where STV used.
STV has also all the benefits of multi-member districts, described in another blog.
For these reasons and more, Single Transferable Voting would be the form of pro-rep that would be most easily adopted and in operation the best suited to the Canadian political culture.
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What is STV?
From a 1902 reform magazine: "Thinking it well to have in every number something by way of a brief explanation of proportional voting, I repeat in this number the following. Proportional representation means the use of a reasonable and scientific system of voting instead of the present stupid, unfair and inefficient procedure. Methods: There are several systems by which the principle of proportional representation may be given effect to. Large electoral districts, each electing several members, are a necessary feature. The "quota" plan is usually employed. It means that a quota of the votes elects one representative. To arrive at the quota, the number of valid votes cast is divided by the number of seats to be filled. For instance in a seven-member district any one-seventh of the voters could elect one representative and the other six-sevenths could not interfere with their choice. The three principal systems of proportional representation are the Free List as used in Switzerland and Belgium [party-list pro-rep], the Hare system as used in Tasmania [STV], and the Gove System as advocated in Massachusetts. The Preferential Vote [Alternative Voting/Instant Run-off Voting] -- This is used in the election of single officers such as a mayor. It is not strictly a form of pro-rep but is akin thereto, and uses part of the same voting methods. The object of preferential voting is to encourage the free nomination of candidates and to obtain always a clear majority at one balloting, no matter how many candidates are nominated." (From the Proportional Representation Review Dec. 1902, p. 77) (Hathi Trust online resource, page 81/180) Thanks for reading. Check out my blog "list of Montopedia blogs concerning electoral reform" to find other blogs on this important subject. ----------------------------------- This year: *Alberta is celebrating 150 years in Confederation 1870-2020 *100th Anniversary of STV first being used to elect legislators in Canada Winnipeg MLAs first elected through STV in 1920 ==============================================================
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