Analyzing the Need for Electoral Reform in the Canadian Government

This essay, authored by a student, argues for the implementation of electoral reform in Canada, focusing on the shift from the First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) system to proportional representation. The essay begins by outlining the current political climate and the historical context of electoral reform efforts in Canada, including the 1990s initiatives. It then delves into the FPTP system, explaining its mechanics and highlighting its perceived drawbacks, such as the misrepresentation of smaller parties and the "wasted votes" phenomenon. The essay also explores the benefits of proportional representation, emphasizing its ability to provide a more accurate reflection of the electorate's preferences, encourage coalition governments, and reduce political extremism. The conclusion reiterates the necessity of electoral reform in Canada, citing the support from civil organizations and political parties like the New Democratic and Liberal parties, advocating for the adoption of a system that promotes broader representation and governmental stability. The essay references various scholarly articles and government reports to support its arguments, providing a comprehensive analysis of the topic.

1LAST NAME OF STUDENT
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note
SHOULD CANADA HAVE AN ELECTORAL REFORM
The present political scenario of Canada demands the implementation of the electoral
reform. The federal as well as the provincial governments of Canada had in the year 1990,
correlated with the electoral reform. This majorly affected the use of the voting system involving
the FPTP methods. The move had favored the proportional representation within the country of
Canada. The civil organizations within the Canadian territories have been known to have
supported the reform along with the support from the New Democratic party and the Federal
Liberal party. The country of Canada should implement the electoral reforms. The following
essay deals with the arguments on the necessity of the electoral reform in Canada. The essay
opens with the discussion on the state of the political affairs within the Canadian provinces. The
essay then proceeds to discuss the positive effects of the implementation of the single member
plurality in the governance of the country. The essay further proceeds to discuss the advantages
of the proportional representation in the governance of the concerned political arena. The essay
nears the conclusion with the discussion of the advantages of the electoral reform on the
Canadian political scenario.
The federal as well as the provincial governments of Canada had in the year 1990,
correlated with the electoral reform. This majorly affected the use of the voting system involving
the FPTP methods. The move had favored the proportional representation within the country of
Canada. The first-past-the-post electoral system is better known as the FPTP electoral system. In

2LAST NAME OF STUDENT
this system, the voters are required to indicate their chosen representative on the given ballot
paper (Lagassé and Saideman). In this system the candidate who receives the highest number of
posts is declared to be the winner of the election. This method is also known as the electoral
method wherein the winner is known to walk away with the major part of the votes. The FPTP
electoral system is also referred to as the single member plurality or the SMP in the better terms
of political science. The election process that is followed within the country of Canada is known
to have been comparable to the horse races. The seat allocation in both the administrative levels
are known to have been implemented the process of single member plurality. In the Legislative
Assemblies of the states as well as the House of Commons, the choice is based on the number of
the seats owned by the party. The choice is not accomplished on the basis of the overall
popularity of the vote. Thus, in the majority of the instances it is revealed that the political party
that has been assigned the power to rule the state is not wanted by the common people residing in
the area. The present electoral system that is functional in the state of Canada is known for the
wastage of the votes that have been cast by the voters (Golden and Picci). It might also be
observed that the smaller parties that are present within the given area are genuinely
misrepresented thereby leading to the problematic conditions within the given country.
The present system of governance that is followed in Canada is known to establish the
fact that the political party that wins the election must surpass the competing parties by the
minimal number of the votes that are available within the concerned area. The electoral system
that is maintained within the given country is also known to have major benefits. This refers to
the understanding of the voters. The results of the elections are also easy to calculate in case of
the implementation of the single member plurality (Liberal.ca). The major benefits of the single
member plurality refer to the ease in the choosing one of the representatives of the political

3LAST NAME OF STUDENT
parties that are active within the given territorial boundaries. The process of the election is one of
the major advantages of the concerned activity. The simplicity of the given process lies in the
fact that the winner in this style of voting is very easy to detect. The person who receives the
highest vote is known to have won the elections.
The other major advantage of the electoral system is the fact that the concerned system of
governance aims at the establishment of a governing body that is stable in nature. in this system
is observed the fact that the sole aim of the political parties is to get the concerned public offices.
The political parties that have been active within the given territorial boundaries are observed to
be inclined towards the concentration of the resources and the power over the given area. This
might help the concerned political parties to have a larger influence over the processes that are
followed for the election. The single member plurality as followed by the governmental body
further helps to provide a simplified way towards winning the elections (Barnes, Lithwick and
Virgint). The concerned political party should be able to gather the maximum number of votes.
The political parties that are active within the given territorial boundaries thus tend to put forth
an expansion in the platforms that are maintained by the parties in order to deal with the
incorporation of the various issues that are faced by the concerned voters. This leads to the
dominance of the winning party over the other minor parties which in turn leads to the
stabilization of the government due to the lesser presence of the parties that constitute the
majority thereby fostering the majoritarian legislatures that are more predictable in nature.
The other electoral system that might be implemented by the government of Canada
refers to the proportional representation. In this process, the voters need to vote for the chosen
party that has been contesting in the election and not for the chosen candidate who has been
representing the party. The Canadian government might aim to implement the proportional

4LAST NAME OF STUDENT
representation process in order to deal with the issues that are faced by the Canadian government
(Arter). The major advantages of the propositional representation lie in the implementation of the
conditions wherein the grievances and the issues of the common people are heeded. In this
electoral system, the political parties need the votes that represent only one percent of the total
electorate. The representation of these types helps in the matters that are related to the actions
that need to be implemented in order to deal with the issues that are faced by the common people
of the country. The implementation of the proportional representation within the given
government helps in the providing the representation of the residents of the area in a proper
manner. The proportional representation incorporates the representability of the various sections
of the population in a proper manner (Theglobeandmail.com). The votes that are casted by the
various voters are not wasted in the proportional representation system. The implementation of
the proportional representation within the given governmental body helps in highlighting the
major issues that are faced by the residents of the area.
The proportional representation system also allows the proper representation of the issues
while putting a check on the attempts of the political parties to woo the votes towards their own
field. The electoral system of the proportional representation within the given territorial
boundaries help the concerned country or the state to maintain a parity with the activities of the
other nations of the world. The proportional representation within the given governmental body
is observed to put forth a reduction of the effects of the extremism that is mostly observed in the
realm of politics within any given state or country. This is due to the fact that the full majority
within the governing body is hard to achieve in cases where proportional representation is
implemented within the election system (Cross and Young). The representatives who have been
involved in the activity are observed to find the build the consensus through the compromises on

5LAST NAME OF STUDENT
their part. This in turn results in the moderate and the centrist policies rather than the extreme
policies. The proportional representation within the given country is known to encourage the
formation of the coalition government. This in turn also helps in addressing a greater number of
issues that are faced by the residents of the concerned country.
In lieu of the above discussion, it might be pointed out that the electoral reform within th
Canadian government is necessary. The civil organizations within the Canadian territories have
been known to have supported the reform along with the support from the New Democratic party
and the Federal Liberal party. The election process that is followed within the country of Canada
is known to have been comparable to the horse races. The seat allocation in both the
administrative levels are known to have been implemented the process of single member
plurality. The proportional representation, on the other hand, incorporates the representability of
the various sections of the population in a proper manner. The proportional representation within
the given country is known to encourage the formation of the coalition government. Thus, it
might be concluded that the Canadian government must implement the proportional
representation process.

6LAST NAME OF STUDENT
References
Arter, David. "The what, why’s and how’s of constituency service." Representation 54.1 (2018):
5-21.
Barnes, Andre, Dara Lithwick, and Erin Virgint. Electoral systems and electoral reform in
Canada and elsewhere: An overview. Library of Parliament= Bibliothèque du Parlement,
2016.
Cross, William, and Lisa Young. "Personalization of campaigns in an SMP system: The
Canadian case." Electoral Studies 39 (2015): 306-315.
Golden, Miriam A., and Lucio Picci. "Incumbency effects under proportional representation:
leaders and backbenchers in the postwar Italian chamber of deputies." Legislative Studies
Quarterly 40.4 (2015): 509-538.
Lagassé, Philippe, and Stephen M. Saideman. "Public critic or secretive monitor: Party
objectives and legislative oversight of the military in Canada." West European
Politics 40.1 (2017): 119-138.
Liberal.ca. "Electoral Reform." Liberal.ca. N.p., 2018. Web. 22 Nov. 2018.
Theglobeandmail.com. "The Evidence Is Clear. Canada Needs Electoral Reform." The Globe
and Mail. N.p., 2018. Web. 22 Nov. 2018.