LTE: Electoral Reform

Why do we vote the way we do in Canada? Most of us are used to the system called First Past the Post, but have
you ever stopped to ask if it’s really fair?

Under the First Past the Post (FPTP) system, the country is divided into ridings. In each one, the candidate with
the most votes wins, even if they only get 30 or 35 percent of the vote. The party that wins the most ridings
often forms government, even if they received far less than 50 percent of the total vote.

This means a party can get a majority of seats and all the power with just 39 percent of the national vote.
Meanwhile, other parties that earned millions of votes may end up with only a few seats or none at all. That’s
neither democratic nor proportional.

Proportional Representation (PR) works differently. It gives each party the number of seats that matches the
percentage of votes they received. If a party gets 30 percent of the vote, it gets about 30 percent of the seats.
It’s simple, fair, and democratic.

Recently, a group of us in Cornwall got together for a presentation on voting systems. What we learned was eye-
opening, and it made us want to learn more. We’re a non-partisan group made up of people from across the
political spectrum, and we believe this is a conversation all Canadians should be having. This isn’t about party
politics. It’s about making sure every vote truly counts.

We invite you to join us at the Cornwall Public Library Community Room on June 9, 2025 at 6:30 pm for a
discussion about electoral reform. Let’s talk about what a fairer and more democratic voting system could look
like, and how we, as citizens, can help make it happen.

Sincerely,
Elaine Kennedy and fellow citizens from across the political spectrum