Free Our MPs

Do you hear the federal election clock ticking?  Members of FVC Saskatchewan Chapter hear it loud and clear.  The Chapter is acutely aware that the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system leaves the winner's circle open to a majority government voted in by a minority in any election.  If the winner's circle was claimed by a minority in 2011, it can happen again and again.  We urgently need to reform our election system.

While some chastise the 40% of Canadians who did not bother to vote, we have to ask ourselves how many of us have tried strategic voting in the hopes of making our votes count?  Strategic voting is undemocratic.  You are not voting for someone who represents your voice but for the voice of a lesser evil.  This graph shows the past elections as seats (white bars) and what our House of Commons would look like if we had proportional representation (red bars).

The FPTP system makes parties more concerned with beating the competition than engaging in cooperation for a better Canada.  While the majority of us are wage slaves, it appears that the majority of MPs have become party slaves.  Like our scientists, our MPs may be kept in line with an economic whip.  Next election, let's free our MPs and elect a party committed to immediately implementing proportional representation.