About two-thirds of Canadians are generally satisfied with the country’s democracy, but just as many think parties should make decisions collaboratively, says a report on the Liberal government’s online survey about electoral reform. It also says Canadians may be open to changes – if the new system is easy to understand. The findings from the much-maligned MyDemocracy.ca survey, released Tuesday by Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould, show 50 per cent of respondents are “somewhat satisfied” with the way democracy works in Canada, and another 17 per cent are very satisfied. Still, the survey said 70 per cent of respondents also want a government where several parties agree before a decision is made. And 62 per cent, almost two-thirds, agreed at least in part that it’s better for several parties to govern together, even if it takes longer for the government to get things done.
“Though satisfaction does not necessarily preclude a desire for reforming the electoral system, a majority of Canadians (67 per cent) report being somewhat or very satisfied with the way democracy works in Canada,” the report’s executive summary said.
“Canadians are receptive to options to express their preferences with greater specificity, but not if the result is a ballot that is more difficult to interpret.”
The results from the survey, which did not ask about specific voting systems, are likely to add even more uncertainty to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s 2015 campaign promise to change the first-past-the-post voting system before the next election.
Full Article: Federal government releases electoral-reform survey findings – The Globe and Mail.