2015 Federal Election

[ookpik]

As of now the Liberals have swept Atlantic Canada. Assuming that trend reflects the final outcome, there will be no Opposition representation from that entire region in the House. Perhaps that development alone will turn out to be enough to justify the continued need for the Senate, warts and all. ("Warts" would especially include a particular senator from Atlantic Canada assuming he doesn't lose his current criminal trial.)

[tomh009]

Incidentally, one of their other policies is "a truly independent Senate not based upon partisanship or patronage".  It's a good concept, and hearkens back to the original days as a chamber of "sober second thought" some 140 years ago.  And it doesn't require a constitutional amendment.  But I'm not sure how they can actually make this work in practice.

I can imagine ways to have such a Senate, and there's got to be some countries where it's the case. But I don't know of any.

It is, however, consistent with Justin Trudeau booting all of the Senate Liberals from being Liberals though.

House of Lords is kind of like that.  I know, hereditary lords and all that, but generally they are not partisan.

[Canard]

CBC is calling it: Liberal Government, with Justin Trudeau as our next Prime Minister!

Now, will it be a Majority or a Minority?

[ookpik]

Liberal majority. Who would have believed that?

To paraphrase the previous PM Trudeau, "Welcome to the 180s."

[panamaniac]

And it's looking like there will be a nice little Waterloo Region caucus in the Liberal ranks - Waterloo, Kitchener Centre, Kitchener-South-Hespeler and (surprise!) Cambridge all look like Liberal wins. Plus Guelph.

[MidTowner]

I don’t think that’s correct; the Liberals don’t necessarily favour one system over another – they’ll be appointing a team of people who will research what system is best, by talking with Canadians and then will come back to the house with their findings to vote on what system they should go with.

If the Liberals achieve a majority government with first-past-the-post, which now sounds likely, I think they won't be seriously investigating any kind of proportational representation...why would they, if they can grab a majority of parliament with the current position?

[Canard]

Because it would be the right thing to do?

[jamincan]

A longer term outlook would still favour some form of electoral reform. I expect they'd probably be favouring STV, but even MMP would be favourable for them.

[isUsername]

Because it would be the right thing to do?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Book_(...n_promises

[plam]

I can imagine ways to have such a Senate, and there's got to be some countries where it's the case. But I don't know of any.

It is, however, consistent with Justin Trudeau booting all of the Senate Liberals from being Liberals though.

House of Lords is kind of like that.  I know, hereditary lords and all that, but generally they are not partisan.

Hereditary lords have mostly or completely been disenfranchised now. It's all life peers. But yes, the "crossbench peers" are especially non-partisan. There's a House of Lords Appointments Commission.

[ookpik]

Because it would be the right thing to do?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Book_(...n_promises

"The most notable of these was the Goods and Services Tax, which the Liberals had promised to replace but did not."


This is grossly misleading. The Red Book acrtually promised, "A Liberal government will replace the GST with a system that generates equivalent revenues, is fairer to consumers and to small business, minimizes disruption to small business, and promotes federal-provincial fiscal co-operation and harmonization." 

IOW they proposed to replace (substitute, not repeal) the GST with what most people would call an HST. They did that in Atlantic Canada but were rebuffed by the provinces elsewhere. The opposition of the day, the Reform Party, was also against an HST. It was only when Harper became PM that Flaherty managed to convince him of the need for an HST and was able to get more provinces on board.

Admittedly there are other examples of Liberal governments who reneged on their promises, just as there are of Conservative governments who did likewise. Sometimes it even makes sense. Circumstances change, e.g. an economy goes into recession. As Keynes famously said "When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir?"

But that said, I share the concern that with a solid majority based on 40% of the popular vote, young Trudeau will be hard pressed to follow through on electoral reform in the House. I'm more optimistic about the Senate, where the Liberals need a majority in order to enact legislation. There are also the matters of (1) "Liberal" senators no longer in caucus and (2) the 22 vacant seats (out of 105), (3) the determination of the Duffy trial and (4) the results of other investigations into malfeasance by the likes of Wallin, Brazeau et al.

[zanate]

That's right.  All they are saying is that this will be the last PPTP election, and that they will introduce the legislation within 18 months.

Now I'm trying to envision how a Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol election would work.

Maybe it's an online e-voting system, where you have to use PPTP to create a virtual network by which your ballot will be communicated.

[tomh009]

Ugh! That's what I get mixing up my WRC time and sorting out VPN connection issues!

[jamincan]

It looks like KW has a member in cabinet. Bardish Chagger will be Minister of Small Business and Tourism.

[ookpik]

Yup, she just got sworn in. Good for her. Good for the region.