A 137-signature petition was delivered to Parry Sound-Muskoka MP Scott Aitchison in hopes it persuades him to support an electoral reform motion.
Paul Kuebler delivered the petition Monday afternoon and says he spent time discussing the topic with Aitchison at his constituency office at 15 Northland Lane in Huntsville.
“Currently we have a system that allows a party to have 100 percent of the control despite only getting 40 percent of the vote,” explains Kuebler.
The Liberals currently form a minority government after getting 32.62 percent of the over 17 million votes cast in the 2021 federal election while the Conservatives are the Official Opposition after earning 33.74 percent.
The parties won 160 and 119 seats, respectively, during the election. To form a majority government, a party needs to win at least 170 seats.
British Columbia MP Lisa Marie Barron put forward the motion M-86 Citizens’ Assembly on Electoral Reform.
If passed, it would see a citizens assembly established with a mandate of giving Parliament a recommendation on what the best electoral system for Canada is. The motion specifies the process to pick the unspecified number of assembly members would be impartial and would have to reflect the “diversity of the Canadian population.”
“It will generate a government that has to work in consensus more than it does today,” says Kuebler. “Today it’s adversarial. One side has 100 percent control the other side sits there and criticizes.”
Parker Varnai, a spokesperson for Aitchison’s office, said in an email to the MyMuskokaNow.com newsroom Aitchison wasn’t available for an interview but writes he “thanks the petitioners for making their voice heard.”
Kuebler says similar petitions are set to be delivered to the doorsteps of other federal politicians throughout Canada, including supporters in Almaguin, Parry Sound, and Utterson.