Democratic nominations?
October 6, 2009 - 12:45am
You can't turn on the television without hearing of a candidate being appointed to run for parliament somewhere in Canada.
In Germany, this would be illegal.
But isn't Germany the place, you may ask, where half the MPs are elected on a party list? Aren't they appointed? And anyway, can't parties do whatever they like?
No, and no. Germany has laws to guarantee democratic nominations.
Why can't Canada have laws making nominations democratic?
The new normal: appointee runs against appointee. Michael Ignatieff has appointed Deborah Gillis to be the party’s candidate for the Halton riding in the next federal election. Former Conservative MP Garth Turner ran as the Liberal candidate in last fall’s federal election but lost to Conservative Lisa Raitt, who had also been appointed to the riding.
Any more appointed candidates this year?
Over the last few years many discussions on electoral reform have been multi-partisan. Greens, Liberals for Electoral Reform, and democratic reform conservatives have showed up. More would have been welcome.
With campaigns like the Declaration of Voters' Rights and Fair Vote Canada saying "We need fair and unrestricted competition among political parties presenting democratically-nominated candidates" there's lots of room for poeple who are not NDP supporters.
Both Liberal candidates in the Quebec by-elections are appointed.