Four things to consider regarding the wonders of democracy in Alberta.

1. Tow the party line. You are voting for the party, not the person. In Canada, we have a parliamentary system, which means that the MLA (or MP) you elect will uphold and stand for the political party and its policies over the specific positions of their constituents. In the U.S., there is more accountability to constituents and two members of the same party can vote differently on an issue according to the wishes of their constituents (for/ against Iraq, gun control, healthcare, etc). In Canada, unless a free vote has been declared, members will fall out of favor and potentially be ejected from a party for not voting along party lines. So pick the party whose values most closely match your own (and doesn’t flip-flop on those values)!

2. Voter Apathy? Proportional Representation. No wonder people don’t vote or engage in their society- they know it won’t make any difference. The mark of a healthy democracy is healthy opposition- responding to a majority of your citizens, not just the ones that voted for the ruling party. Alberta lacks a lobbyist registry (among other citizen empowerment structures), but the biggest thing missing is Proportional Representation (PR). If we had had PR in 2004, the breakdown of the AB Legislature would be very different.

Party – seats with PR (% of vote 2004) [current # of seats /83 total]
PC – 39 seats (47%) [61]
Liberals – 24 seats (29%) [17]
NDP – 8 seats (10%) [4]
Wildrose Alliance – 7 seats (9%) [1]
Green – 2 seats (3%) [0]
Social Credit – 1 seat (1.25%) [0]

3. It’s always been here and it always will be. Don’t think for a second that democracy is a given. Last November, the Conservatives passed Bill 46 stripping rural landowners of the right to be informed and debate major utility and industry developments that pass through their land. Bye-bye ‘right’ to participate democratically.

4. Voting is only part of a healthy democratic diet. Make no mistake, voting is important – it’s one of the ways we prove that we are Canadian citizens rather than mere Canadian consumers, but real democracy happens in between elections, with citizen action and public pressure. Don’t vote and then go to sleep for 4 years.

“To some degree it matters who’s in office, but it matters more how much pressure they’re under from the public.” – Noam Chomsky