Fair Vote Alberta launches campaign for a citizens' assembly
October 22, 2004
Friday, October 22, 2004
Campaign for a Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform Launched
Edmonton - "Today Fair Vote Alberta launched a campaign to call on the Government of Alberta to initiate a Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform," said spokesperson Harvey Voogd. "The Citizens' Assembly would assess all possible models for electing the Members of the Legislative Assembly. If it recommends changes to the electoral system, that option would be put to a province-wide referendum."
"I endorse this campaign because there is a democratic deficit," said former Senator Hon. Dr. Thelma Chalifoux. "Provinces across Canada, including B.C., Quebec, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Ontario, are responding to this thirst for electoral reform by launching different initiatives."
"As a former Liberal MLA from 1993 to 2001," said Edmonton City Councillor Karen Leibovici, "I experienced the unfairness of Alberta's current electoral system. In the 2001 provincial election, my party received 27 per cent of the vote, but won only 7 seats. If the seats had been determined by the Liberal's popular vote, we would have won 24 seats."
According to John Carpay of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (Alberta Division), "It is absolutely imperative that citizens undertake this initiative because only they can discharge this duty without being in conflict of interest. MLAs elected by our current voting system have a built in bias to the system that got them elected. Why would they change a system that works for them?"
"Alberta has not always used our current voting system," said Helene Narayana of Fair Vote Alberta. "It was only in 1959 that the Social Credit government abolished the province's mixed system of proportional and majority voting, returning the entire province to our current first-past-the-post electoral system."
Other individuals and organizations that have endorsed the campaign include:
-- Bob Hawkesworth, Calgary Alderman
-- Mel Hurtig, Author
-- David King, former Alberta Cabinet Minister
-- Terry Wickham, Edmonton Folk Music Festival
-- YWCA of Edmonton
Fair Vote Alberta's campaign is based on a similar Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform which is currently underway in British Columbia. If change is recommended by the B.C. Citizens' Assembly, British Columbians will become the first Canadians to decide on a new voting system in a referendum to be held with the next provincial election scheduled for May 17, 2005.
The actual text of the Fair Vote Alberta campaign is as follows:
We, being citizens of the Province of Alberta call on the Government of Alberta to initiate a Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform.
The Government of Alberta should appoint a Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform to assess all possible models for electing the Members of the Legislative Assembly, including preferential ballots, proportional representation and our current electoral system.
The Government of Alberta should give the Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform a mandate to hold public hearings throughout Alberta, and if it recommends changes to the electoral system, that option be put to a province-wide referendum.
Fair Vote Alberta is a provincial organization comprised of voters from all parties, all points of view and all walks of life. We are helping Albertans learn about the problems with our voting system and the availability of better alternatives.
Fair Vote Alberta
Baker Centre PO Box 40003
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 4M9
Ph: (780) 722-5065
Fax: (780) 420-0435
alberta@fairvotecanada.org
http://www.fairvotecanada.org/fvc/Alberta
[ This Message was edited by: admin on 2004-11-21 13:58 ]