Latest news with #first past the post
National Post
5 days ago
- Politics
- National Post
Canada's first-past-the-post voting system is constitutional, Ontario appeal court rules
A woman casts her vote in a federal election. Photo by Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press/File OTTAWA — A panel of three Ontario Court of Appeal judges unanimously affirmed the constitutionality of Canada's first-past-the-post electoral system in a ruling released on Monday. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE ARTICLES Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors The system, laid out in the Canada Elections Act, sees the candidate who receives the most votes in a given riding or electoral district become the member of Parliament. Fair Voting BC and the Springtide Collective for Democratic Society argued in court that the first-past-the-post system violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms' guarantee of effective representation. The groups also said the system leads to the under-representation of women and other groups in Parliament, breaching the Charter's equality rights provision. Get a dash of perspective along with the trending news of the day in a very readable format. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again In a proportional representation system, the number of representatives a political party elects reflects the percentage of the total vote the party receives. In November 2023, the Ontario Superior Court dismissed the challenge from Fair Voting BC and Springtide. It said that while a proportional representation system would be a fair alternative to the current system, it's not required by the Constitution. In its decision, the province's Court of Appeal also rejected the groups' key arguments. 'The electoral system is not in conflict with either the right to vote or the right to equality. It does not violate the Charter,' Justice Grant Huscroft said in written reasons delivered on behalf of another judge on the panel. 'The appellants' arguments that the electoral system violates the Charter are, in essence, a repackaging of failed political arguments as constitutional rights violations.' The expert evidence 'put forward in support' of those arguments, Huscroft wrote, is 'replete with highly contestable policy arguments about which reasonable disagreement abounds, not only in the academic community but amongst the public at large.' 'This evidence demonstrates the shortcomings of constitutional litigation in addressing public policy disagreements,' he added. The short answer to the argument that the electoral system violates the Charter is that Canadian citizens are free to vote for anyone they choose, and for any reason they choose, Huscroft added. 'There is no constitutional requirement that their individual choices aggregate in a way that achieves some ideal of representational diversity,' he wrote. 'Neither the political party affiliation nor the personal characteristics of the candidates who win election are relevant to the constitutionality of the electoral system.' During the 2015 election campaign, then-Liberal leader Justin Trudeau promised it would be the last federal election held under the first-past-the-post system.
CTV News
5 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Canada's federal voting system is constitutional, Ontario Court of Appeal rules
A sample ballot box is seen at Elections Canada's offices in Gatineau, Que., on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang OTTAWA — A panel of three Ontario Court of Appeal judges unanimously affirmed the constitutionality of Canada's first-past-the-post electoral system in a ruling released on Monday. The system, laid out in the Canada Elections Act, sees the candidate who receives the most votes in a given riding or electoral district become the member of Parliament. Fair Voting BC and the Springtide Collective for Democratic Society argued in court that the first-past-the-post system violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms' guarantee of effective representation. The groups also said the system leads to the under-representation of women and other groups in Parliament, breaching the Charter's equality rights provision. In a proportional representation system, the number of representatives a party elects reflects the percentage of the total vote the party receives. In November 2023, the Ontario Superior Court dismissed the challenge from Fair Voting BC and Springtide. It said that while a proportional representation system would be a fair alternative to the current system, it's not required by the Constitution. In its decision, the province's Court of Appeal also rejected the groups' key arguments. 'The electoral system is not in conflict with either the right to vote or the right to equality. It does not violate the Charter,' Justice Grant Huscroft said in written reasons delivered on behalf of another judge on the panel. 'The appellants' arguments that the electoral system violates the Charter are, in essence, a repackaging of failed political arguments as constitutional rights violations.' The expert evidence 'put forward in support' of those arguments, Huscroft wrote, is 'replete with highly contestable policy arguments about which reasonable disagreement abounds, not only in the academic community but amongst the public at large.' 'This evidence demonstrates the shortcomings of constitutional litigation in addressing public policy disagreements,' he added. The short answer to the argument that the electoral system violates the Charter is that Canadian citizens are free to vote for anyone they choose, and for any reason they choose, Huscroft added. 'There is no constitutional requirement that their individual choices aggregate in a way that achieves some ideal of representational diversity,' he wrote. 'Neither the political party affiliation nor the personal characteristics of the candidates who win election are relevant to the constitutionality of the electoral system.' During the 2015 election campaign, then-Liberal leader Justin Trudeau promised it would be the last federal election held under the first-past-the-post system. Once in office, however, Trudeau's government abandoned his pledge to replace the system. Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press
CBC
5 days ago
- Politics
- CBC
Canada's voting system is constitutional, Ontario Court of Appeal rules
Social Sharing A panel of three Ontario Court of Appeal judges unanimously affirmed the constitutionality of Canada's first-past-the-post electoral system in a ruling released on Monday. The system, laid out in the Canada Elections Act, sees the candidate who receives the most votes in a given riding or electoral district become the member of Parliament. Fair Voting BC and the Springtide Collective for Democratic Society argued in court that the system violates the Charter of Rights and Freedoms' guarantee of effective representation. The groups also said the system leads to the underrepresentation of women and other groups in Parliament, breaching the Charter's equality rights provision. In a proportional representation system, the number of representatives a party elects reflects the percentage of the total vote the party receives. In November 2023, the Ontario Superior Court dismissed the challenge from Fair Voting BC and Springtide. It said that while a proportional representation system would be a fair alternative to the current system, it's not required by the Constitution. In its decision, the province's Court of Appeal also rejected the groups' key arguments. "The electoral system is not in conflict with either the right to vote or the right to equality. It does not violate the Charter," Justice Grant Huscroft said in written reasons delivered on behalf of another judge on the panel. "The appellants' arguments that the electoral system violates the Charter are, in essence, a repackaging of failed political arguments as constitutional rights violations." Limitations of litigating policy disputes The expert evidence "put forward in support" of those arguments, Huscroft wrote, is "replete with highly contestable policy arguments about which reasonable disagreement abounds, not only in the academic community but amongst the public at large… "This evidence demonstrates the shortcomings of constitutional litigation in addressing public policy disagreements." The short answer to the argument that the electoral system violates the Charter is that Canadian citizens are free to vote for anyone they choose, and for any reason they choose, Huscroft added. "There is no constitutional requirement that their individual choices aggregate in a way that achieves some ideal of representational diversity," he wrote. "Neither the political party affiliation nor the personal characteristics of the candidates who win election are relevant to the constitutionality of the electoral system." During the 2015 election campaign, then Liberal leader Justin Trudeau promised it would be the last federal election held under the first-past-the-post system.
