(Montreal) Québec solidaire (QS) asks Prime Minister François Legault to renew his commitment to reforming the voting system and to agree to reopen the debate before the holidays.
Last Thursday, MP Sol Zanetti presented a bill to the National Assembly aimed at establishing a new voting method more representative of the will of voters.
It essentially takes up the bases of the reform tabled in 2019 by the CAQ government before the latter gave up on having its project adopted.
After the turnaround of the third link, anything is possible. Mr. Legault could make another turnaround, which would be more positive, would obtain the consent of a large part of the population and would also be better for democracy.
Sol Zanetti
The member for Jean-Lesage asks the Coalition Avenir Québec government to present its bill before Christmas, so that it can be studied in parliamentary committee.
“We are still quite close to what they had proposed. It increases the chances that the government will call the project, then find that it is a good basis for negotiating with the other parties,” Mr. Zanetti said in an interview.
The results of the last general election demonstrate the importance of changing the system between now and the next elections in 2026, he stressed.
“The last election was historic in terms of vote distortion. It is unusual that the government which has 41% of the votes has more than 70% of the seats. […] If there was proof to be made that our system is not fair, it has been done. People are very aware of it,” said Mr. Zanetti.
“I am convinced that a voting system with more proportionality could also help to increase participation in elections. There are a lot of people who would say: ‘I think it’s worth my while to vote because I have a better chance of being represented,’” he added.
The day after the 2022 elections, Mr. Legault closed the door to relaunching the debate on a more proportional voting system, while four years earlier, he promised reform.
Mr. Zanetti believes that the situation is now favorable to bring the issue back to the forefront, highlighting the mobilization work carried out by the New Democracy Movement to make it an “unavoidable issue”.
PQ MP Pascal Bérubé is also sponsoring a petition on the National Assembly website calling for the adoption of a mixed proportional voting system. As of Monday, it had collected more than 5,800 signatures.
Stretching the “rubber band of decorum”
Asked if he regretted having inflated and deflated a balloon in the middle of the Blue Room a few days ago, Mr. Zanetti replied that he “could have done it outside” the Chamber.
During question period last Thursday, the elected representative tried to illustrate the nationalism of the CAQ, which according to him does not live up to expectations in terms of repatriation of powers in culture.
He thus inflated a “balloon” and then released it so that it deflated, which triggered some disorder among the elected officials and led to the suspension of work for several minutes.
Many, including the government and the opposition, considered this gesture unacceptable, which does not respect the decorum of the Blue Room.
“I may have pushed the elastic of decorum a little,” he admitted Monday in an interview with The Canadian Press.
“That said, we have some questions about the rules in the Blue Room. I find that the fact that ministers respond very little to our questions is something serious, which is not often noted because it has become so habitual,” he simply added, not wanting to revisit this episode any further.