Quality of Democracy Envy

  Do you distinguish between jealousy and envy? I do. Jealousy is wanting something someone else has and not wanting them to have it. Envy, on the other hand, is wanting something someone else has while being fine with them having it too.

I envy the quality of democracy in Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland. These countries, among others, use proportional representation (PR) to elect their national legislatures. PR ensures political parties win seats based on the percentage of votes they receive. This system encourages people to vote because they know their vote truly counts. In Canada, a dispiriting 50% votes elect no one; in Belgium, it’s less than 5%.

PR systems lead to higher voter turnout (especially among younger people), more diverse representation (in terms of age, gender, and occupation), and greater voter satisfaction. With more women in legislatures and a structure that encourages cooperation over competition, PR fosters collaboration. This leads to thoughtful, long-term legislation that builds voter trust. Greater trust, in turn, leads to increased civic engagement—a key indicator of a healthy democracy.

As the Saskatchewan election approaches, ask your candidates if they support electoral reform with PR. If they don’t, ask how they plan to improve civic engagement and the quality of our democracy. Share your conversations with facebook.com/FairVoteSask and learn more at FairVote.ca.

Success Promoting PR at Saskatoon Pride

 At our Saskatoon Pride booth, we drew inspiration from a Fair Vote Canada session that used Lego to illustrate the math behind first-past-the-post (FPTP) and proportional representation (PR). The speaker's dramatic gesture of sweeping wasted votes into a garbage can had a profound impact on me. Could I replicate this visceral experience for voters? Absolutely!

I prepared two garbage containers labeled “Winners” and “Wasted” and brought my Tile Rummy game. We asked visitors, “Did the candidate you voted for in the last provincial or federal election win?” (Emphasizing that we were not interested in the candidate or the party.) Those who answered “Yes, my candidate won,” picked a black tile and tossed it into the Winners bucket. Those who answered “No,” picked a colored tile and tossed it into the Wasted bucket. Many of the “No” respondents shared my sense of the unfairness of wasted votes.

Next, we compared the number of tiles in each bucket. This comparison often led to a “Really?” moment for both “No” and “Yes” voters. Even though we clarified that our sample at Pride was not representative of the general electorate, many were surprised by the outcome. If our tiles represented an election, 10 voters would have picked the winner, while 79 votes would have been wasted.

FPTP Wasted Votes 79 to Winner Votes 10

A big thanks to volunteers Lynn and Sherry for personing our booth. We had lively conversations throughout the day with people who asked questions and people who responded to our questions. When things finally quieted down, I thought I could relax and have supper, but I was delighted to put my food aside as more questions came in.

Fair Vote Canada Saskatchewan Chapter at Saskatoon Pride

I’m pleased to report that more people are becoming aware of electoral reform and proportional representation. Let’s celebrate our progress!

Mature Politics with Proportional Representation

Decades ago, one of my children visited Saskatchewan’s Legislative Assembly. Expecting to learn about governance and democracy, they were instead appalled by chaos and incivility. Elected officials, who were supposed to represent us with dignity, behaved like squabbling children.

Image by Dmitry Abramov from Pixabay

Recent sessions amplify the worst tantrums of past decades. MLA Ken Francis confessed he gets sucked into trash talk almost daily. Speaker Randy Weekes’ final speech alleged threats and harassment from fellow Saskatchewan Party MLAs. He also alleged Deputy Leader Jeremy Harrison brought a gun into the Assembly.

Premier Scott Moe’s response? Weekes is a “sorer loser” and Moe dismisses the alarming allegations against Harrison as false. No investigation necessary. He also categorizes the texts to Weekes as “ambitious” rather than “harassment.” Ambitious? To what purpose? Partisan purposes as the sender attempts to have the non-partisan speaker favour a side?

The first-past-the-post produced Assembly fosters an environment where yelling and intimidation mock dialogue and collaboration. Reform with proportional representation could address these issues. By ensuring that legislative seats more accurately reflect the diverse views of our population, evidence proves proportional representation encourages coalition-building and cooperation. Instead of a winner-takes-all approach that fuels partisanship, this system promotes a more inclusive and respectful political culture.

Proportional representation offers a path to a more mature and effective legislative process. To improve our democracy in provincial and federal elections, vote for candidates who will enact electoral reform with proportional representation. Learn more at FairVote.ca or facebook.com/FairVoteSask.