Mixed Member Proportional

Policy Area

Electoral Reform

Priority Level

Immediate

Last Updated

January 22, 2024

The Policy

The RPC will replace the current first-past-the-post electoral system with a modified version of a mixed member proportional system, similar to the one currently utilized by New Zealand, as was recommended in 2004 by the Law Commission of Canada, while adapting the system to remove the identified flaws and shortcomings.

The Liberals, NDP and Bloc Québécois told media outlets they will allow journalists to travel with their leaders.

Poilievre's opponents have since pounced on the party's decision.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Thursday it's "no surprise" Poilievre is "afraid of some questions."

"You can see the way he acts when he gets asked a question. He gets defensive, he gets offended," he said. "He can't handle questions. Is that someone you want as prime minister? Someone who's afraid of questions, who can't take the heat? You need someone who's going to be able to take tough questions."

Singh said Prime Minister Mark Carney has also shown a reluctance to answer tough questions about his finances and possible conflicts of interest, after he bristled at questions when asked by reporters earlier this week.

A spokesperson for the Liberal Party said it's Poilievre who is trying to dodge accountability.

"Why does Pierre Poilievre's team feel like they need to hide him from the media and Canadians in the next federal election? He's the wrong choice at the wrong time," the spokesperson said.

A spokesperson for the Green Party said the move to block reporters from travelling with Poilievre is part of a Conservative "pattern of contempt" for the press.

"Democracy cannot function without a free press," said Green Party Co-Leader Elizabeth May.

"When political leaders actively avoid scrutiny, it should alarm every Canadian. The Green Party has always been open and accessible to the media, and we will continue to lead by example," May said.

I’ve always considered it a problem that Canada’s largest newspaper chain is owned by a U.S. hedge fund with ties to Donald Trump.

But it’s suddenly an urgent problem, now that Trump has been re-elected president of the United States and seems hell-bent on annexing Canada.

Newspapers play a vital role in a functioning democracy. They provide the key ingredient: a well-informed citizenry.

Because of their centrality to the democratic process, Canadian tax and investment laws have aimed to keep newspapers Canadian-owned.

Unfortunately, however, those laws are full of loopholes. And so, in 2010, Stephen Harper’s Conservative government had no trouble permitting the takeover of Canada’s largest newspaper chain — with more than 100 media outlets, including leading dailies like the Vancouver Sun and Ottawa Citizen — by a company called Postmedia, even though Postmedia was owned by several U.S. hedge funds.

Electoral Renewal Canada on Bluesky

Two-party systems are bad democracy, it's that simple.

When the two dominant parties are widely unpopular, this would be fertile ground for the growth of a third party in a proportional system.

Winner-take-all First-Past-the-Post gives a chokehold to big parties.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5197910-democratic-partys-favorability-hits-record-low-poll/

Electoral Renewal Canada on Bluesky

And don't assume that Instant Run-Off voting (aka. Alternative Vote) would be much better.

Australia, which uses IRV, has an even stronger two party system than Canada. Minority governments are rare.

The only way to break the two-party stanglehold [sic] is a proportional system, like MMPR or STV.

Toronto Star on Bluesky

American hedge funds should be banned from owning Canadian newspapers. Democracy is at stake.

We now urgently need those newspapers to be owned by loyal Canadians committed to Canada’s independence. #Opinion

Link to article.

This is a great easy to understand historic video of how mixed-member proportional works using the cake analogy.

Alt text: Infographic titled "A Simple Guide to Electoral Systems" with a light blue background. At the top, a highlighted box states: "In a healthy democracy, citizens are deserving of and entitled to representation in government. Only proportional representation can dependably get you there."

The content is organized in two main columns. The left column labeled "Winner-Take-All Systems 🚫" (in red) describes First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) used in Canada/USA where the candidate with most votes wins but many votes don't elect anyone, and Instant-Runoff Voting (IRV) which uses ranked ballots but still wastes votes.

The right column labeled "Proportional Representation ✓" (in green) describes Mixed-Member Proportional (MMP) used in Germany/New Zealand where voters cast ballots for both local candidates and parties, and Single Transferable Vote (STV) used in Ireland which uses ranked ballots in multi-member districts. Both proportional systems ensure the percentage of votes equals percentage of seats.

A blue band across the middle highlights "Systems using Ranked Ballots: IRV and STV."

The bottom contains three gray boxes stating: "Which electoral system is best? If you care about democracy, proportional representation is the way to go," "Which political parties support proportional representation? Only Green🟢/NDP🟧/RPC🟨 consistently support proportional representation," and "Share this with a pro-democracy friend!"

The content is licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0.

Electoral Renewal Canada on Bluesky

Two-party systems are bad democracy, it's that simple.

When the two dominant parties are widely unpopular, this would be fertile ground for the growth of a third party in a proportional system.

Winner-take-all First-Past-the-Post gives a chokehold to big parties.

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5197910-democratic-partys-favorability-hits-record-low-poll/

Electoral Renewal Canada on Bluesky

And don't assume that Instant Run-Off voting (aka. Alternative Vote) would be much better.

Australia, which uses IRV, has an even stronger two party system than Canada. Minority governments are rare.

The only way to break the two-party stanglehold [sic] is a proportional system, like MMPR or STV.

Cult MTL on Bluesky

“Pierre Poilievre continues to prove that he’s unfit to be prime minister. If the Conservatives were more of a political party, and less of a cult, they would have read the writing on the wall and held a leadership review. Their leader cannot lead.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to call a federal election on Sunday for a vote as early as April 28.

Sources would not confirm the specific date of the vote, but federal campaigns must run at least 37 days.

This will be Canada’s 45th federal election.

Canada’s political parties have been mobilizing campaigns by nominating candidates and organizing leaders’ tours.

Carney was elected as Liberal leader to succeed Justin Trudeau on March 9 and was sworn in as prime minister along with his new cabinet on March 14.

This week he made his first trip abroad, visiting France and the U.K. before making a stop in Iqaluit to assert Canada’s sovereignty amid annexation threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.

‪CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives‬ ‪on Bluesky

“Hoping that Google or hoping that Meta is going to save us in terms of local news production is a real fool’s errand,” said @davidmaccdn.bsky.social, co-author of new @policyalternatives.ca report News Deprivation.

@civicplan.bsky.social #misinformation www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-local-news-coverage-in-canada-in-steep-decline-inviting-misinformation/