First-past-the-post rife with vote inequality
The opponents of proportional representation are quite busy these days whipping up fear of fringe (extremist) parties should PR come to pass.
But how would they present a danger when they would be out in the open where everybody could see them? It is quite clear their recognized presence simply insulates the majority from extremist influence, as most pro-rep countries have experienced.
In fact fringe elements are always going to exist in a complex society such as ours. However, presently, under first-past-the-post (FPTP), they lie hidden but influential within the larger parties. A snake in the grass is much more dangerous than one on a paved road!
Our habitual and uncritical reliance upon the FPTP electoral system contains the rattlesnake of vote inequality. The fact that one vote for party A can often be anywhere from five to 15 votes more valuable than a vote for party B should be heard like the rattle of inequality that it is. Where is the democratic principle of every vote being equal in that imbalance?
Remember Trump to the south and Ford to the east? They are extremists, they are both products of FPTP inequalities and we’re sure hearing their rattles!
We need a system where 30 per cent of votes equals 30 per cent of seats equals 30 per cent of power.
We need proportional representation!
Ian MacKenzie
Kamloops