Party with 3 seats supports party with none
A party with three seats in the National Assembly is supporting the “right” of a party with no seats at all to be included somehow in the National Assembly.
The argument that “some people like our ideas so it’s antidemocratic to exclude us” is a novel one. An antidemocratic and specious one, but a novel one.
The three PQ MNAs have still not taken the oath, so it’s not clear whether they will be allowed to sit either. As for Éric Duhaime – well, there isn’t even a chair for him.
Blork 12:06 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
Seems to me it’s the PQ hedging against a future election where they get results similar to what the Conservatives got this time around. After all, the actual number of votes cast for PQ and Conservatives is pretty close. PQ just lucked out on distribution (this time).
Tim S. 12:24 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
Actually, I would argue that the electoral system is close to completely broken – those two parties together represent 27% of voters and have 2.4% of seats. I suspect an ad-hoc attempt to alleviate the distortion without making long-term changes is the worst outcome, though I don’t blame the Conservatives and PQ for kicking up a fuss.
qatzelok 12:34 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
I agree with Tim S. An electoral system that gives a party that received 10% of the votes zero seats, is not fundtionning properly.
Our FPTP system was introduced in the late 1700s and seems suited to a manichean worldview of “good versus evil,” rather than the complex social web the we live in today. It only works if you have two parties. And even then… has a tendency to silence minority voices entirely.
steph 14:15 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
I’d say it’s broken when 37.42% gives a majority..
Kate 15:33 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
Well, it needs to be fixed. But the PQ was elected (and the PCQ not elected) under the current rules. They can’t weasel more power under these rules, they accepted them when they opted to run.
I suppose, although in theory I’ve been in favour of some electoral reform, I can now see how it could give fringe and possibly even dangerously nutbar parties a place in government.
jeather 16:34 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
There are alternate voting methods that require a minimum percentage of votes received to get power, so you don’t get a bunch of parties that each got 3% causing trouble.
I have heard it said that the only worse system than FPTP is LPTP.
Ephraim 17:43 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
Either we change the voting system, which no one seems interested in doing OR we run the system as it has been running and stop placating those who were in power who promised to change the system but didn’t
Wahwahwah… you should have realized that there would be a time when you weren’t in power and agreed to change the system
The same goes for the CAC… they will one day no longer be in power. And the PQ, the Action Democratique, the Equality Party, the Union Nationale, Action Liberale Nationale, and the Conservatives (just to name a few who were in the NA… some that were even the governments and are gone) should realize that political affiliations change and maybe it’s time to change the system before they wane… not when you are out of favour and you have to come begging to survive
Then again, the Conservatives haven’t been around since the 1890s. Duplessis and the Union Nationale was in the 1930s and last we heard from them was the 1970s.
I’m so sick and tired of baby boomers running things…. people who think fax machines are new fangled… I’m dealing with an estate at the moment and here I am waiting for a paper death certificate, a paper form from the notaries saying what was the last will, a paper form from the lawyers saying what was the last will and then needing certified copies for all the damn organizations, rather than have certified PDF files… because no one wants the damn paperwork anymore.. we want to store all this in the damn cloud!
Tim S. 19:17 on 2022-11-28 Permalink
There’s an argument to be made for letting ahem, “smaller” parties in and seeing how they handle responsibility, instead of letting the sense of resentment fester. The recent history of the federal Green party is instructive in this regard. Sadly, in my opinion, but the point stands.