“We need the largest mandate in history”.
That was Doug Ford’s justification for calling an Ontario election seventeen months early, in the middle of a trade crisis with the US in which all provincial premiers have a critical role to play.
Some would argue this is the worst time to put partisanship first.
In 2018, first-past-the-post handed Ford’s PC 61.3% of the seats with just 40.5% of the vote. At the time Ford claimed a “mandate for the people”.
In 2022, first-past-the-post handed Ford’s PC 67% of the seats with 40.8% of the vote. Ford’s popular support barely changed between 2018 and 2022 but our disproportionate voting system handed him a bigger landslide of seats for a bigger “mandate”.
While Ford claims he needs a new “mandate”, it is unlikely he’ll win the support of a majority of Ontarians. The last time any leader had a true majority was in 1937.
The only reason we’re having a snap election is because Ford hopes that first-past-the-post will give him another four years of majority power with a minority of the vote. Now is the best time to grab it.
This isn’t a new playbook. We’ve seen Premiers including John Horgan and Blaine Higgs take the same kind of gamble and they hit the first-past-the-post jackpot.
In 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called a snap election with the same motive; power. He was returned to the House with 32% of the vote and a requirement to cooperate with other parties in Parliament.
Our voting system shapes decisions on every issue—it’s too important to ignore
When it comes to decisions about the economy, healthcare, the environment and more, first-past-the-post shut voters out of having fair representation and a voice in decisions that affect their lives.
If we had proportional representation rather than fighting an early election, our party leaders would be working together to respond to Donald Trump.
Fair Vote Canada has been collecting signatures in recent weeks on a petition to the Ontario NDP, Liberal and Green Party leaders calling on them to include proportional representation and a Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform in their campaign platforms.
To date, over 9000 Ontarians have signed the petition.
Green Party leader Mike Schreiner met with 21 local Fair Vote Canada volunteers in Guelph on Monday to accept the petition (picture below).
Ontario NDP Democratic Reform Critic Chris Glover will meet with Fair Vote Canada volunteers soon.
We have yet to receive a response from Bonnie Crombie. During the Ontario Liberal leadership race, Crombie stated she would support a Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform. We remain hopeful she will recognize that winner-take-all politics doesn’t serve Ontarians and that we need a collaborative and evidence-based approach to electoral reform.
Fair Vote Canada volunteers meet with Ontario Green Party leader Mike Schreiner to present the petition for proportional representation.