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EMMETT MACFARLANE

Why a referendum on electoral

reform? Because this isnt ordinary
legislation
EMMETT MACFARLANE
Contributed to The Globe and Mail
Published Monday, Aug. 01, 2016 6:00AM EDT
Last updated Friday, Jul. 29, 2016 4:19PM EDT

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Emmett Macfarlane is a Political science professor, University of Waterloo.

THE GLOBE RECOMMENDS

----------------------------------As a parliamentary committee spends the summer examining electoral
reform, the federal government has thus far resisted the idea of holding
a referendum on the matter. The Minister of Democratic Institutions,
Maryam Monsef, has dismissed the idea as divisive and argues that a
referendum is not a good way to resolve complex matters.

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Other critics have argued that Canadians are too uninformed to be able
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If these arguments seem compelling (and I do not find them to be), it is
perhaps only because the case for a referendum has not been well
articulated, at least beyond basic appeals to democratic consent and

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legitimacy that some advocates, including the federal Conservatives,

have put forward.
There are several good reasons why there ought to be a referendum on
electoral reform. The first issue is the nature of the governments
mandate, in the form of an election promise, which critics of a
referendum argue gives the government effective carte blanche. But
note the specific promise the Liberals made: that 2015 would be the last
election using the current first-past-the-post system, and that the
government would consult on a new system. In effect, the Liberals have

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a clear mandate to pursue electoral reform but they do not have a

mandate to enact any specific system.
The promise of consultation is interesting because it does not
necessarily imply a referendum. However, given the very arguments that
critics of first-past-the-post make about governments in Canada gaining
100 per cent of the power after receiving only 40 per cent of the vote, it
would be deeply ironic for the government to change the electoral

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system without first making sure that a majority of Canadians do not

prefer the status quo. Some commentators note that other parties also
supported electoral reform, and while this is true, nothing about the

2015 election can be taken to presume support of any particular

electoral system by the general public.

HIGHLIGHTS
But isnt this an issue that should be decided by Parliament? Yes and no.
There is no doubt that Parliament should be engaged in different forms
of consultation as the committee is doing, for example to analyze
issues relating to electoral reform and consider alternatives. But the
democratic legitimacy of any change might be called into question
without a referendum, particularly if there is not all-party support for a

new system. A perception that parties are using electoral reform to their
own advantage, for example, would only raise further issues for the
publics general trust of the system. (I am not one of those who believes
particular changes necessarily benefit particular parties for one thing,
parties will adjust their behaviour depending on which system is in

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Another reason for a referendum is that electoral change likely counts as
constitutional change. The Supreme Court has articulated an approach
to the amending formula that suggests any essential features of our
central institutions are part of the constitutional architecture.
Parliament is still free to enact electoral reform without provincial
consent, but doing so would count as a constitutional amendment.
Even if we put aside the constitutional question, there is little doubt that
electoral reform would be a change of a fundamental nature unlike other

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ordinary legislative changes. Because it would change the composition

of the House, it would at least indirectly affect all other laws passed by
Parliament. This gives it a heightened importance beyond ordinary
legislation.
Another argument in favour of a referendum is precedent. Jurisdictions
similar to Canada including New Zealand and Britain, as well as
Ontario, British Columbia, and PEI have held votes to obtain public
consent before changing their electoral system. New Zealands process
is particularly illustrative, as it required multistage votes. Despite this
hurdle, the public overwhelmingly supported reform.
This latter example only underscores the vacuous nature of the
Canadians are too uninformed argument against a referendum.
Beneath every objection to a referendum seems to be lurking the fear
that Canadians simply wont vote the way reform advocates want.

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This speaks much more clearly as to why a referendum is needed, rather
than the opposite. With a clear question and a proper information
campaign, Canadians should be trusted to pass judgment on the most
fundamental process linking them to the state.

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