Are Poilievre's democratic concerns of the long ballot valid?
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre is calling for legislative changes as he faces more than 200 challengers in the Alberta byelection he needs to win to regain a seat in the House of Commons. Most of the candidates are associated with the Longest Ballot Committee, a grassroots electoral reform group seeking to draw attention to itself by flooding ballots with as many names as possible in several recent elections and byelections. But their tactics have raised questions about the effect long ballots have on the accessibility and integrity of the vote. Host Caryn Ceolin speaks to Julie Simmons, associate professor at the University of Guelph’s political science department to discuss both the flaws in the Canadian electoral system that long ballots aim to highlight and whether such protests have the potential to depreciate our democracy.
The Big Story · Caryn Ceolin
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Show Notes
In less than 2 weeks, it's do or die for Pierre Poilievre.
Not only is he in for a political battle to get into the House of Commons, he's got other forces working against him, including another lengthy ballot.
Most of the candidates are associated with the Longest Ballot Committee, a grassroots electoral reform group seeking to draw attention to itself by flooding ballots with as many names as possible in several recent elections and byelections. But their tactics have raised questions about the effect long ballots have on the accessibility and integrity of the vote.
Host Caryn Ceolin speaks to Julie Simmons, associate professor at the University of Guelph’s political science department to discuss both the flaws in the Canadian electoral system that long ballots aim to highlight and whether such protests have the potential to depreciate our democracy.
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