direct democracy/electoral systems

list the 3 things it involves

1. referendum

2. citizen initiatives

3. recall

what do referendums do

divide people, because there are only 2 answers

EX: the Quebec referendum created a division within Quebec. where some people still hold grudges

citizen initiatives

where citizens petition to their govt to get what they want. they go around collecting signatures to turn their wants into a plebicite

what is the recall mechanism

the mechanism where issues with MLA’s where citizens can create a petition to have the MLA’s run again in a by election

where did recall occur ?

Alberta, where they needed 40% of votes collected within 2 months. they did not get enough signatures

when is direct democracy the strongest?

when anti-govt/anti-party is strongest

who influenced direct democracy in Canada

Jean Jacques Rousseau, who believed it was the purest form of political engagement and priviledged deliberation and collective sovereignty

PR systems are used in

Greece, new zealand, Finland

explain PR list

the party leaders rank their candidates, then the citizens vote for the party they like. the % of votes translates to the % of seats in parliament. who ever is at the bottom really doesn’t get seats

what are problems with the PR lists

only the top 3 seems to get elected

this only forms minority governments

there are no local candidates

mixed member PR

each person gets 2 ballots, you vote for your local MP and then vote accordingly to the party list

advantages of mixed member PR

it is more proportional than other forms

it gives a local MP

single transferable vote

everyone votes by ranking their choices

the votes are tallied, then the party with the lowest votes get eliminated. you look at these ballots and give votes to their second choices

you need 50% +1 to win

advantages of single transferable vote

it is democratic

it gives people the ability to capitalize on their second choice

disadvantages of single transferable vote

you can manipulate the votes to ensure you get to be second choice and ensure your govt stays in power

EX: Justin Trudeau wanted this system because when people are upset with the liberals, they will always vot NDP(who never get elected and their votes will be eliminated anyway). then, all those votes typically have liberals as second choice due to the ideological similarities and therefore the liberals can stay in power

2005 pei plebicite

this asked citizens whether or not they wanted to switch to a mixed PR membership system

results were a low voter turn out and no change (only 33% turnout voting no)

2016 pei plebicite

they spent more time marketing the different systems and lowered the voting age to 16

result of the 2016 pei plebicite

people were overall split, however the majority did in fact vote for the MMP system.

but, the voter turnout was very low which was too low to intepret the will of the people

wade long

a liberal party member that operates in the St john region (mainly conservative feelings). long typically breaks party boundaries by adopting more conservative approaches.

even though he goes against JT, the liberals will not get rid of him because long keeps wining elections

how do you feel bout parachuted candidates

they raise issues about the role of the central parties

it risks alienating the local constituencies

and people do not like these candidates because they do not represent local interests

jobs of the local candidates

1. raise money

2. bring forth issues

3. understand and inform the central party apparatus

pulling and hauling in central parties

the central parties try to control the message on the ground and enforce more and more control over time. they aim to erode the autonomy of the local candidates who often pushback

why do voting systems matter

they affect how votes convert to seats (the mechanics) and how voters and parties behave (the psychological aspect)

SMP benefits …

regionally concentrated parties and discourages smaller or new parties

period of 1914-1956 in CAN

due to labour and socialist movements, there was some reform and temporary adoption of STV in cities and provinces (nothing at federal level)

1968-1992

reform emerged as a tool to accommodate regional diversity and emerged in respnse to Queb seperatism and western alienation (but broiught no change)

2000-present

reform is motivated by the democratic deficit (declining turnout, political alienation), but even with public interest no major reforms have succeeded

barriers to reform

• political self interest is the largest factor

• public indifference or elite indifference

what factors have contributed to Canada’s limited elctoral reform

the stability of the two party system. reforms only gain traction with leftist movements or new parties, byt reforms were still only short lived

what are some common gendered themes in politics?

the higher the fewer: womens representation decreases as one climbs higher into the marty

the more competitive, the fewer: the more powerful a position, the less likely it is to be held by a women

when are women most often used in politics?

they are placed in elecotrally unwinnable ridings or assume leadership when parties are in decline

left leaning parties and gender

they are more proactive with affirmative action (especially the NDP)

right leaning parties and gender

tend to favour individualist and gender-neutral ideologies and reject special measures

how has structure, ideology, and internal cultures affected womens access to positions of political power

party structure: some parties like the NDP have the quotas and internal commitments to help women achieve positions. others, frame participation as a matter of personal initiative and not in need of systemic correction
ideology: this frames the placement of women, such as how women are placed in unwinnable ridings.