OK, I am going to recant, briefly, here. I think they should have proportional voting in Quebec. I admit to the heresy that I am spouting but I think the outcome would be worth it for the laughter.
Quebec politics is good for a laugh at any time. I just feel the amusement could run longer under proportional representation in the Quebec assembly. Under first-past-the-post voting we, too often, end up with one of the minority parties winning enough seats to form a government.
But with five major parties in the running, it would be more fun to have all five in the assembly fighting it out on an on-going basis. Just how long it would be between elections would be a toss-op.
Proportional representation would give each of the parties a number of seats according to their popular vote. As it would be unlikely that any one party would win enough seats to form a majority, there would have to be some deal making to form a government. For example, the CAQ of François Legault might need the four or five of Éric Duhaime’s conservatives to give the CAQ a majority. It would be a marriage made in some place below Heaven.
Conversely, Québec Solidaire might have enough members, along with the liberals, to form a government. There would be heavy action with Quebec’s bookies on how long that coalition would last.
Though nobody would be very interested in a deal with the losers in the Parti Québécois. They might be lucky to elect two or three MLAs.
And that is the problem with Quebec politics. Parties tend to come and go. Here today, gone tomorrow, is their slogan.
As it stands today, the Quebec liberals are the oldest party in the assembly. They have had some interesting conservatives running that party in my lifetime.
But then what is in a name. And who knows what the next two or three Quebec parties will be called? Just keep it interesting ‘mes amies.’
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