In Which I Lament the State of New Brunswick Politics

The results of the NB election were not too surprising for most, but I'll admit they weren't what I expected.  I really thought the People's Alliance would act as a bigger spoiler for the PCs than they turned out to be - really, they were pretty much a non-factor in almost every riding.  In the end, the Tories took 76% of the seats with only 48% of the vote...

Hooray for the FPTP system! [/sarcasm.]

Really, we badly need voting reform in this province, and this country.  That the NDP should get ten percent of the vote and end up with no seats - a clear indication that a good portion of the populace want them as representatives in the Legislature - is shameful.  Unfortunately, it's only the third parties who ever talk about any sort of voting reform...  With good reason, since voting reform (i.e., greater democracy) only ever harms the power base of entrenched political interests.

If we had a more proportional representation system, "coalition" wouldn't be a naughty, scary word - it would simply be the way things are done.  Indeed, parliamentary systems evolved specifically to accommodate them.  Government should be a matter of finding compromise and common ground, instead of a contest between two parties winner-takes-all.  Governance shouldn't be a game that people are trying to win, it should be a matter of finding the best way to represent a the will and best interests of the populace.

Instead, our FPTP system encourages a game of musical chairs.  The Liberals and the Progressive Conservatives have very, very similar policies in many regards.  The Libs got spanked this election in large part because of their attempted sale of NB Power...  Putting the Tories in charge.  But the Tories tried to sell off NB Power themselves back in the 90's, so it's not like they make a sterling alternative on that issue.

It's very easy to get discouraged.  Speaking out in favour of reform for a system that's been designed to make it tremendously difficult to reform sometimes feels like tilting at windmills...  It requires people to vote against the two traditional parties in favour of an alternative - and since the bar of entry for third parties is so high, it requires them to do so in great numbers.

Still, one cannot give up.  Mere voting is not the end-all, be-all of democratic participation.  The responsible citizen must educate, agitate, and participate whenever the opportunity presents itself.  Change is a messy, unwieldy thing, which makes it that much more important.