largeheartedboy

Five ways you can help Ontario’s democratic revolution! [email protected] An Open Letter Ontario students and youth: First, I want you to circle October 10, 2007, on your calendar, because that’s the day we change Ontario politics forever. But we need you – and thousands of other students and youth – to step up and help make it happen. This is your personal invitation to make political history. On October 10, we’ll have the opportunity to cast out our antiquated electoral system and replace it with a new democratic voting system that is more responsive to young voters and everyone else. As you may aware (or not, the mainstream media is doing a great job ignoring them!), the Ontario Citizens’ Assembly, composed of randomly selected voters, is studying the question of voting system reform for Ontario. Next month, they are very likely to recommend that Ontario adopt a new voting system, probably based on proportional representation. If the Assembly recommends a new system, that recommendation will be put to voters in a referendum to be held in conjunction with the October 10 provincial election. What’s At Stake? Political power. The future direction of our province. Legislation on issues like health care, education, the environment. The voting system matters. It matters a lot, because the voting system allocates political power, creates parliaments and determines who forms governments. That in turn determines who calls the shots on issues that affect our communities, our society and the environment. The stakes are incredibly high. If we change the voting system, giving every Ontarian an equal and effective vote, we change the entire political arena. If we change the voting system in Canada’s largest province, the political effect will be felt right across the country. Politics as usual will be over! How Bad is the Current System? It’s intolerable. Ontarians (and all Canadians) suffer the effects of the world’s worst electoral system – first-past-the post. Typically, a party gets about 40 percent of the votes, wins 60 percent or more of the seats and then wields 100 percent of the power, as though it had a majority mandate. Meanwhile opposition voices are diminished and other minority voices are completely shut out of the political process. Are There Better Ways to Vote? Yes. Almost all the Western democracies scrapped first-past-the-post voting last century, and adopted voting systems designed to treat all voters equally and give fair and proportional election results. More than 80 democracies, including almost all of Western Europe use various forms of these fair and proportional voting systems. Each has developed a version to fit their distinctive political cultures and geography – Ontario can do likewise. Fair voting systems provide better results for citizens. They elect more women and visible minorities and have higher voter turnouts. Voters feel better represented and are happier with government policies. Finally, fair voting systems have been shown to have better environmental policies, higher energy efficiency and lower greenhouse gas emissions. What Can You Do To Make It Happen? Fair Vote Canada, through our Fair Vote Ontario campaign, is preparing to win the fight for a fair and democratic voting system in October. To ensure that young voters know the importance of a fair voting system, Fair Vote is organizing a student and youth campaign to be active on campuses this Fall. Here is how you can help: 1) Visit the Fair Vote Canada www.fairvote.ca and Fair Vote Ontario www.fairvote.ca/ontario website. Learn more about the issues and our campaign. 2) Volunteer to help the Fair Vote Ontario student and youth campaign to win the October 4 referendum. To keep informed email me at [email protected]. 3) Bring the issue of voting reform to organizations you are involved with. Encourage them to endorse our campaign and support a renewed democracy. 4) Get together with your friends and organize a Fair Vote chapter on your campus. We are looking for coordinating teams on every Ontario campus. If this interests you, please contact us. 5) Most importantly: forward this email to friends and other email lists! Democratic reform is a do-it-yourself project for citizens. We cannot depend on the media or those in positions of power to lead the democracy revolution. It’s up to us! Let’s do it! Yours for a strong democracy, Mark Greenan Interim Chair Student and Youth Campaign Fair Vote Ontario [email protected]