Editor: Re: Fix is in on change in voting system, Keith Baldrey, Burnaby NOW, May 9.
(This column) is just a bit over the edge. Do the Green/NDP caucus have Vladimir Putin on speed-dial? Come on, Keith!
The government will hold a referendum this fall on whether we should make our voting system more proportional. Proportional voting means that we would elect MLAs in proportion to our votes. In other words, a party that gets 40 per cent of the vote would get 40 per cent of the seats.
That makes sense to me. All we’re asking for is that the way we vote is fairly reflected in the legislature.
If you look back at previous elections, you can see that our current system voting system nearly always gives the winning party a boost in seats. That’s just the way the counting works out. It’s also why certain parties are so invested in keeping the current system and why there are so many obstacles to change.
Just as a typical example, Christy Clark’s government won a comfortable majority of the seats (58 per cent) based on a popular vote of only 44 per cent.
Proportional voting systems use more accurate ways of counting the votes so that seats match votes. The goal is for every voter to have their views represented by an MLA.
So what is Mr. Baldrey’s point? Why is he whipping up this frenzy? What’s he got against us voters?
Iain Macanulty, Burnaby
