Fair Vote Canada

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Fair Vote Canada is a nonprofit, multi-partisan advocacy group for electoral reform in Canada. It is active both federally and in those provinces where there are efforts to reform the first past the post system that is used now in Canada. Its aim is "to gain broad, multi-partisan support for an independent, citizen-driven process to allow Canadians to choose a fair voting system based on the principles that all voters are equal, and that every vote must count." One of its major campaigns has been a petition calling on the Government of Canada and all other Parliamentary parties to "1) initiate a public consultation on instituting a more proportional voting system, and 2) provide Canadians with a referendum process to choose the best voting system."

While it steers away from advocacy of any particular voting system, Fair Vote Canada has spoken out on several of the initiatives that have come out of the Canadian provinces. The group evaluates each initiative based on its statement of principles, which states that any electoral reform should achieve the five objectives of proportional representation, fair representation for women, minorities, and Aboriginals, accountable government, geographic representation, and real voter choice.

In March 2005 FVC issued assessments of the four provincial proposals. On the British Columbia electoral reform referendum, 2005 it recommended that British Columbians vote “Yes,” that they consider this the first step in a continuing reform process, and that they press for further improvements to increase proportionality and enhance diversity. For Quebec, FVC said the MMP framework provided a very good foundation on which to build a fair voting system, but the current proposal must be greatly improved, and it urged a citizen-driven process to improve the proposal. It has been very supportive of the Citizens' Assembly process for the Ontario electoral reform referendum, 2007, while recommending some improvements to the process.

While Fair Vote Canada strives to maintain a nation-wide, multi-partisan support base, its members and directors are overwhelmingly left-of-centre and Ontario-based; it also receives considerable trade union donations but minimal corporate support. The election of Rick Anderson, former advisor to Preston Manning to the board in 2006 constitutes the first time conservative proponents of voting reform have had any presence in the organization's decision-making since the 2004 resignation of Bruce Hallsor.

[edit] Sources

• Fair Vote Canada