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Trudeau Popularity - or not (various polling, etc.)

Maybe we'll end up with electoral reform like Trudeau promised then people can be happy that another promise has been met?
I'm not sure a one side solution is what Canadians were thinking. This goes right to the heart of democracy. It should be a reasoned, well thought out, careful negotiation, that can satisfy most Canadians. Tabling a bill, limiting discussion as trudeau is want to do and a forced vote with predestined results is exactly the way to make people question our election process. When we lose faith in that, we are finished as a democracy. It's too bad this doesn't warrant opening the Constitution. Otherwise, whoever is in power can change the voting rules on a whim. It would seem the marxist coalition only worried about electoral reform when they realized they were going to get there asses handed to them and need an advantage. Canadians aren't that stupid as to believe trudeau/singh are just fulfilling a promise made eight years ago.
 
Nope.

Allowing an "expanded" three-day voting period during general elections;

Allowing voters to cast their ballots at any polling place within their riding; and

Improving the mail-in ballot process with both accessibility and maintaining integrity in mind.

Pretty benign if you ask me.
oh well.

benign probably but I dont like things that make it easier to call into question the election results
mail in ballots seem to fall into that category as do ability to use multiple polling places.
 
Perhaps I’m being overly cynical, but is it wrong to imagine an element of ‘reporting progress’ during the 3-days of voting? Let the various parties race to get more of their voting base activated?
I'm not quite that pessimistic (although it's far from zero chance of happening), but the cynic in me is thinking if it's already tough to get people voting on the day, or all the advance polling days open to them, what are the odds of getting them out if the window's bigger?
 
I'm not quite that pessimistic (although it's far from zero chance of happening), but the cynic in me is thinking if it's already tough to get people voting on the day, or all the advance polling days open to them, what are the odds of getting them out if the window's bigger?
You’re right, TBG. Advance polls and a full day should be enough. I see this as Kabuki Theatre…to make it look like JT is (finally) honoring his 2015 campaign promise…but it’s really just a Venti (aka large) Nothing Burger…

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oh well.

benign probably but I dont like things that make it easier to call into question the election results
mail in ballots seem to fall into that category as do ability to use multiple polling places.
Uh, international voters already use mail in ballots.

Some US states have used them for decades without incident, despite accusations to the opposite.
 
Uh, international voters already use mail in ballots.

Some US states have used them for decades without incident, despite accusations to the opposite.
Im not particularly worried about their use but the arguments it opens up. Voting is easy, people arent avoiding voting because its difficult
 
Pretty benign if you ask me.
Wait for it.

LeBlanc's office told CTVNews.ca that the two parties are "currently working on" this legislation, but also declined to offer any further specifics on the timeline, vowing "next steps will be communicated in due course."
 
Nope.

Allowing an "expanded" three-day voting period during general elections;

Allowing voters to cast their ballots at any polling place within their riding; and

Improving the mail-in ballot process with both accessibility and maintaining integrity in mind.

Pretty benign if you ask me.
I agree. But I’m not thrilled that two out of five parties are doing this without the other three.
 
I agree. But I’m not thrilled that two out of five parties are doing this without the other three.
And with trudeau's standing with Canadians it will only make them more suspicious and opposed to the idea. Trudeau just can't be trusted period, anything he champions needs to be examined with a jaundiced eye.
 
And with trudeau's standing with Canadians it will only make them more suspicious and opposed to the idea. Trudeau just can't be trusted period, anything he champions needs to be examined with a jaundiced eye.
I think the big heads in the LPC, as well as the NDP, are starting to see that writing on the wall.

Trudeau is a boat anchor on anything theyre trying to move forward now that the "Sunny Ways" are not coming...
 
oh well.

benign probably but I dont like things that make it easier to call into question the election results
mail in ballots seem to fall into that category as do ability to use multiple polling places.

The simplicity and intuitiveness of our current system beats out any proposed system I have seen.

You vote for the person you want to represent you, the one with the most votes wins. Adding layers of complexity just ads confusion to the results.

Yes, I know that individuals can be made to understand a more complex system, but given the lack of knowledge of how our current system works, I suspect the masses won't learn any new system. When the masses don't trust the system the system fails. With our simple and intuitive system in place now, people already don't trust it. How does adding complexity and more layers make it more trustworthy?
 
Note, only the Liberals and NDP are involved in this discussion. What could go wrong?

Trudeau and Singh's teams quietly planning electoral reform legislation

As progress on some measures in the Liberal-NDP confidence-and-supply agreement continue to play out publicly, the two parties have quietly been in talks to table electoral reform legislation before the next federal vote.

Leading these negotiations on the political front, are Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc, and NDP MP and democratic reform critic Daniel Blaikie.

In an interview with CTVNews.ca between NDP caucus retreat sessions in Edmonton, Blaikie said there has been "a fair amount of work done," towards drafting amendments to the Canada Elections Act.

While not a full-scale overhaul of the federal voting system as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau once promised, within the two-party confidence-and-supply agreement are a series of electoral reform proposals aimed at expanding "the ability for people to vote."

Specifically, the Liberals and New Democrats agreed to explore:
  • Allowing an "expanded" three-day voting period during general elections;
  • Allowing voters to cast their ballots at any polling place within their riding; and
  • Improving the mail-in ballot process with both accessibility and maintaining integrity in mind.
"I think if you look at all of those items… those are all things that will require some kind of legislative change," Blaikie said, adding that the working expectation is that the trio of reforms would be contained in one bill that could be passed in time for the next election.

"I think people on both sides are keen to try and hammer out those final details and have a product that can be tabled in the House of Commons… I'm optimistic that we will have a bill that certainly includes ways of implementing what was in the [deal]," Blaikie said.

What remains to be revealed if, and when, the legislation comes to fruition, is how far the two parties agree to go, whether directly advancing voting accessibility reforms, or enacting some sort of process to further study expanding voting access.

It's also unclear whether these measures would be in effect for the next federal election, or if the bill would set the timeline for enacting any reforms some time into the future.

On this, the NDP said there have been conversations with Elections Canada centred around implementation, to ensure their desired changes to how Canadians cast their ballots, are feasible.

Expanding the amount of days Canadians have to cast their ballot may be the most significant proposal currently under negotiation.

While Blaikie was hesitant to get too far into specifics of the discussions that have taken place, he said some of the options that have been deliberated include having a voting weekend, expanding voting hours, or potentially adding more advance polling dates closer to election day.

"There's more than one way to do that. I think the real goal is to make voting more accessible… So we've tried to keep an open mind about it," he said, adding that hearing what Elections Canada has to say about how it would impact their operations, "has been instructive in terms of the discussions."

Motivating the push for voters to be able to cast their ballots at any polling place in their riding is in-part Blaikie's experience watching prospective voters be turned away over his years involved with campaigns, both as a candidate, and an organizer in various capacities.

He said in 2024 with the verification technologies available, this policy can be revised while maintaining electoral integrity.

If the Liberals are looking to make further election law reforms, it is possible amendments to enact the trio of reforms could be rolled in to a larger bill. However, that would be a move the New Democrats could only support if the other measures are ones that they can back.

"Issues around democracy and the integrity of elections have been a hot topic in this Parliament for some very good reasons, so we'll see if there ends up being something more," Blaikie said.

While neither side of the negotiations would divulge with any precision the timeline or the current state of draft legislation, Blaikie noted "there's only so much parliamentary runway, and in a minority Parliament, it's not always clear just how much runway there is."

LeBlanc's office told CTVNews.ca that the two parties are "currently working on" this legislation, but also declined to offer any further specifics on the timeline, vowing "next steps will be communicated in due course."

"Access to the vote is a fundamental principle of Canadian democracy, and our government is committed to further strengthening it," said spokesperson Jean-Sébastien Comeau.
Nope.

Allowing an "expanded" three-day voting period during general elections;

Allowing voters to cast their ballots at any polling place within their riding; and

Improving the mail-in ballot process with both accessibility and maintaining integrity in mind.

Pretty benign if you ask me.
Pretty pointless since we already have advanced voting options, multiple polling stations and mandatory time off for voting if one's schedule prevents voting.
 
You’re right, TBG. Advance polls and a full day should be enough. I see this as Kabuki Theatre…to make it look like JT is (finally) honoring his 2015 campaign promise…but it’s really just a Venti (aka large) Nothing Burger…

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It could be one of those things where those who had their heart set on prop-rep'll never get anything close, so they'll be pissed, with not enough being offered to interest the non-interested. Good luck, kids ...
 
I agree that this should be an all party exercise. Having the governing parties do this in exclusion has a very banana republic vibe.
I don't know exactly how much they can change without changing legislation - which would have to involve all parliamentarians - but it would look (to be veeeeeeeeeeeery kind) immensely self-serving done without broad input.

That said, how receptive would Team Blue & others be to providing constructive input & ideas rather than just complaining for the sake of complaining (opposition vs showing they can be the next government)? We'll see ...
 
I don't know exactly how much they can change without changing legislation - which would have to involve all parliamentarians - but it would look (to be veeeeeeeeeeeery kind) immensely self-serving done without broad input.

That said, how receptive would Team Blue & others be to providing constructive input & ideas rather than just complaining for the sake of complaining (opposition vs showing they can be the next government)? We'll see ...
Perhaps trudeau has thrown this on the table, not as real reforms, but to get parliament focused and arguing on it. If they and the press are embroiled with arguing about it, they won't be looking at housing, the economy and trudeau's ethics breeches. He needs breathing room because he's currently mired by any number of the current scandals that are becoming to clumsy to keep juggling.
 
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