Game Plan for Canada's Game-Changer Election
- P J Jewell
- Aug 18, 2019
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 20, 2020
Can Canada’s 2019 election really be a game-changer? Yes—but only if enough voters change how they play the deceptive game of elections—by pledging and voting to Fix Our Democracy!
We have an unprecedented choice in this election: either to become active players—by demanding that political candidates pledge to Fix Our Democracy; or to again be played by the major political parties—in their futile game of fake democracy. The voting system always cheats most voters, most candidates and most parties—by wasting more than half our votes, and coercing many of us to vote for a ‘lesser of evils’.
Elections are a game of deception, with the only two electable parties both using the same game-plan. Each portrays itself as our saviour—our only hope of salvation from the dire consequences of their opponent being elected. Both parties focus their campaigns against their opponent’s leader(s)—present or past, federal or provincial. Such leaders are the focus of most public dissatisfaction and anger— emotions that become ‘rocket fuel’ for their negative campaigns. In our view, Canada’s democracy has a very undemocratic balance of power—the parties and leaders have way too much power—while voters and their Members of Parliament (MPs) have way too little power.
Canada’s 2019 election can really be a game-changer—if enough voters and candidates pledge and vote to Fix Our Democracy! By strategically using the power of our votes, we can elect a majority of MPs pledged to enact the reforms required to Fix Our Democracy—by changing the balance of power— to give more power to voters and their elected representatives, and less power to the parties and the PM. The power of our vote—the true source of all democratic power—also gives us the power to not give our vote to any candidate or party that’s unwilling to publicly pledge to Fix Our Democracy.
Calling on all voters, candidates and parties to make their pledge to Fix Our Democracy! Voter's pledge:
I hereby pledge to give my vote only to a candidate who has publicly pledged to work across party lines to enact the democratic reforms that are essential to Fix Our Democracy.
If none of the candidates in my riding have pledged to Fix Our Democracy, I will vote by marking my ballot as "NONE OF THE ABOVE".
Candidate's pledge:
I hereby pledge that, if I’m elected, I’ll represent the interests of my constituents first (above those of my party), and I’ll work across party lines to fulfill my pledge to Fix Our Democracy.
Party Leader's pledge:
I hereby pledge myself and my party to Fix Our Democracy.
If I become PM, I will work across party lines to Fix Our Democracy as our top priority.
With a minority government, we would only support those pledged to Fix Our Democracy
We can Fix Our Democracy—through the collective power of our votes—by electing a majority of MPs pledged to work across party lines to enact the necessary democratic reforms in three key areas:
Citizen’s Vote Empowerment, recognizes the citizen's vote as the true source and rightful unit of democratic power, which should therefor become the new unit of voting by MPs in Parliament— with each party having exactly the number of citizens’ votes won by all of their candidates [see our other post How to Fix Our Democracy through the Power of Our Votes]. This ensures that the parliamentary balance of power for each party directly corresponds to the expressed ‘will of the people’, as determined by their total number of votes—with all votes counting equally, including those for defeated candidates (for parties with at least one seat)!
MP Empowerment, by establishing the independence of all MPs to fulfill their primary duty—to represent their constituents by serving the people’s interests before party interests—with an obligation to expose any political coercion by party leadership (with whistleblower protection).
MP Empowerment is essential if we are to Fix Our Democracy. MPs have long been bullied and controlled by party leaders, party whips and unelected political backroom operators. Such systemic abuse has long been silently endured by most MPs, without public awareness. It's the political equivalent of spousal abuse, and is another dimension of the abusive practices so often inflicted by those with power over those they control (as recently exposed in so many prominent organizations). Parliamentarians must stand up to confront such disgraceful practices (perhaps a ‘#WeToo’ movement for MPs), proclaiming their fundamental democratic right and responsibility to act independently, and demanding an end to anti-democratic domination by party leadership.
The need for parliamentary reform, and recommended solutions, have been well documented, as in the MP exit interview reports by Samara Canada and their book Tragedy In The Commons: Former MPs speak out about Canada's failing democracy by Loat and MacMillan; and also the book TEARDOWN: Rebuilding Democracy from the Ground Up by Dave Meslin.
The party whip position should be abolished, and a new Parliamentary Reform Act should be adopted, to protect MPs against political attempts to intimidate or interfere with their democratic duty—to serve their constituents and their conscience above any dictates by party leadership.
MP Empowerment should also facilitate greater collaboration and less partisanship—a veritable cultural revolution—as MPs work across party lines to create a new and better Parliament!
Reduced powers of parties and leadership, to prevent dictatorial control and improve democratic accountability, through a power structure founded upon democratic principles, with the leadership accountable to their caucus, and representatives genuinely accountable to voters. In particular by reducing the concentration of power in the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister's Office (PM/PMO), and by ensuring the primacy of Parliament over the PM, PMO and Cabinet.
Citizen’s Vote Empowerment, by preventing false-majority governments, will substantially reduce the risk of quasi-dictatorial rule by a PM/PMO, operating secretly behind closed doors (as a minority government would require support from other MPs not controlled by PM). This should reduce their susceptibility to pressure from corporate lobbyists and wealthy donors.
MP Empowerment measures would also restrain quasi-dictatorial rule by a PM/PMO.
With Citizen’s Vote Empowerment and MP Empowerment, all parties should be motivated to work together with much less partisanship and much more cooperation across party lines.
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