The faster you try to do something, the longer you will have to regret it. There are too many stupid things we do that seem like a good idea at the time.
Take the latest ill-considered suggestions at Queen’s Park to change the way people vote in Toronto elections. The proponents seem to think it will keep the city from electing another Rob Ford. It could also keep them from electing anyone who might be really good at the job.
What is happening is that both a Liberal Member and a New Democrat Member are proposing private member’s bills that will allow the Toronto Council to change the way the voters can choose their mayor and councillors. The New Democrat bill offers to let the council pick a voting method, while the Liberal bill specifies that the council can only choose between a ranked ballot and the present first-past-the-post method. Both bills are bad ideas.
Before we even consider the idea on its merits, or lack thereof, why just Toronto? Why are Ottawa, London, Hamilton, Windsor or even Babel not being allowed a say? Are these cities already perfect? Or are they just unimportant? Have they never had a mayor who embarrassed them? Smarten up Queen’s Park!
There have been many opportunities over the years to rate ranked voting and what we find is that you usually get the most acceptable choice not the best choice. Some might think that acceptable is better than best but you really need to think about it.
And you would expect a Liberal would know some of the answers. When you realize that Premier Kathleen Wynne was chosen in a series of ballots to reach more than 50 per cent of the vote, you can see the problem. The Premier was never first choice, she got to be first choice by being first choice of most of her competitors. Obviously, these competitors considered her to be a good choice for them. The question is: is she the best choice for the voters? That has yet to be decided.
What you really get with ranked voting is mediocrity. It is the same with proportional voting. It happens in all voting forms where the voter loses control of the process. Canada has developed a tradition of open and democratic elections that are controlled by an independent authority created for that purpose that is envied around the world. Only those who want elections to serve their own purpose seem to want change.
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Copyright 2014 © Peter Lowry
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