News and Comment

The latest news and commentary from the Electoral Reform Society.

Around the World | Current Affairs Commentary | Developments at the ERS | Your Questions Answered | Case Studies

View by category

View by date

Quebec’s 2022 election reveals error of not scrapping first past the post

Back in 2018 we reported on the excitement in Quebec which was set for a move from First Past the Post (FPTP) to proportional representation, following a commitment from the Premier of Quebec, François Legault, to the...

Posted 05 Oct 2022

The party that came 4th in the vote came second in seats

How are the members of upper houses chosen around the world?

Many countries use a bicameral political system – meaning that they have two chambers in their parliament. These parliaments are comprised of a lower house where the government is formed and day-to-day politics is carried...

Posted 27 Jan 2022

other countries have powerful regional representatives, Britain remains the odd-one-out

First Past the Post has failed to give the most popular Canadian party the most seats

Minority government on 32% of the vote is one thing, but it is another when it isn’t even the most popular minority that gets to be in charge.

Posted 22 Sep 2021

This is the fourth post-war Canadian election and second in a row with a wrong winner

ERS in the Press – October 2020

This month has seen a renewed interest in proportional representation internationally. Willie Sullivan backed up the case for a fairer voting system in Canada, drawing on his experience in Scotland. “If you want a system...

Posted 29 Oct 2020

What can we learn from Canada’s Leaders’ Debate Commission?

This election’s televised leaders debates have taken place against a backdrop of endless rows over who should be allowed to take part, in what has become a recurring feature of our election campaigns. Arguments over...

Posted 04 Dec 2019

TV debates have a much longer history in Canada, having taken place since 1968

Canada’s election: Last call for First Past the Post?

It looks like Justin Trudeau has narrowly secured his second term as Canada’s Prime Minister. But his party lost out on a majority of seats as well as the popular vote. It was a tough...

Posted 23 Oct 2019

Ontario and Québec look towards electoral reform

We’ve covered the exciting moves towards fair votes in British Columbia and Prince Edward Island – two Canadian provinces looking to ditch the broken ‘Westminster model’. But the usefulness of First Past the Post has...

Posted 29 Oct 2018

Voting opens in British Columbian electoral reform referendum

Attempts at electoral reform in British Columbia (B.C.) – Canada’s westernmost and third most populous province – date back more than 13 years. On Monday, voting opens on whether to scrap the all-or-nothing voting system...

Posted 22 Oct 2018

Is First Past the Post on its way out in Canada?

Around the world, countries that inherited a Westminster style of government from their former colonial rulers have been, one by one, democratising and reforming their systems. Australia and New Zealand, for instance, led the way...

Posted 18 Oct 2018

Electoral reform returns to the agenda in British Columbia

British Columbia, Canada’s most Western province, has often been the site of electoral reform intrigue. In the run-up to the 1952 provincial election the Conservative and Liberal parties tried to stop the socialist Co-operative Commonwealth...

Posted 18 May 2017