OTTAWA – It has been nearly a decade since the Liberals first promised—more than 1,800 times—that the 2015 election would be the last under Canada’s outdated, winner-take-all voting system.
Canadians now know that promise was never meant to be kept. And as a result, election after election, we continue to see the real, harmful consequences of a system that allows progressive vote splitting that favours Conservatives, even when the majority of voters choose progressive parties.
“Canadians deserve more than just a handful of selfless candidates stepping aside at the last minute to avoid vote splitting,” said Elizabeth May, Co-Leader of the Green Party. “They deserve party leaders with the courage to come together and find a path forward—however incremental—that brings us closer to the fair and proportional democracy that Canadians overwhelmingly support.”
That is why today, the Green Party of Canada is reaffirming its support for electoral cooperation and backing groups like Cooperate Canada that are calling for action. Over the past year, Greens have attempted to start conversations with other progressive parties about working together, and we remain open to finding common ground.
“Every election, we see Canadians vote overwhelmingly for progressive parties,” said Jonathan Pedneault, Co-Leader of the Green Party of Canada. “We owe it to them to stop treating electoral reform like a talking point, and actually work together to make it happen. Our democracy depends on it.”
Such an agreement does not have to mean parties stepping aside or removing candidates from the ballot. At a minimum, it could mean reducing the number of ridings where progressive parties spend resources attacking each other—attacks that only serve to benefit Conservatives.
“We saw this play out yet again in Ontario just last week,” said Mike Morrice, Green MP for Kitchener Centre. “Progressive parties split the vote so badly that a Conservative party takes 100% of the power—despite a majority of voters choosing progressive options. It’s a failure of leadership, and Canadians deserve better.”
The Green Party remains open to working with the NDP, Liberals, and Bloc Québécois—any leader willing to prioritize electoral reform—to consider how we might cooperate, even if only for one election cycle, to move Canadians closer to the fair, proportional system they consistently tell us they want.
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For more information or to arrange an interview :
Fabrice Lachance Nové
Press secretary
514-463-0021