Ontario Votes, a post mortem

With all the votes cast and counted, we have another false Liberal majority government in Ontario. The numbers tell the tale. With only 42% of the popular vote, Dalton McGuinty is awarded 66% of the seats, while the other parties all receive fewer seats than demanded by the Ontario voters.

Of course, this is fairly common with our first-past-the-post electoral system, and pretty much the rule in Ontario since the 1930′s.  The best we can say is that the Liberals did in fact receive more votes than any other party yesterday. Thankfully, we did not repeat BC 1996, Quebec 2004, or NB 2006. Some small consolation, I guess.

The results were not unexpected from an uninspiring election campaign which almost completely failed to talk about important issues.  Does anyone remember climate change?  Is anyone concerned with wasting $40 billion on nuclear with only 20 years of high grade uranium left in the world?  Is no one concerned with commitments to subsidize an auto industry who refuses to accept higher fuel efficiency standards?

With the media almost entirely focussed on the Tory promise to extend funding to all faith based schools, and since the Tories and Liberals are pretty much the same on so many important issues, these issues weren’t debated, so new ideas to address them do not get aired in the public forum.

On an even sadder note, Ontario voters passed on the historic opportunity to fundamentally change how our government is chosen which would address this problem. It did not achieve 50%, let alone the 60% hurdle set by the McGuinty government.  It is heartening to note, however, that among voters aged 18-34, MMP received 67% support.  So it’s not whether we will have electoral reform, it’s when.

There is, of course, a bright side.  Despite being shut out the legislature by failing to win seats in our archaic first-past-the-post system, the Green Party of Ontario achieved over 8% of the vote, almost tripling the results of the 2003 election.  Despite being shut out of the televised leaders debate and despite little to no coverage in the mainstream media during the last week of the election, the Green Party attracted over 250,000 new voters.

Mahatma Ghandi said, “first they ignore you, then the ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win.”

The GPO has much to be proud of, including 17 ridings where we finished in 3rd place (1 ahead of the PC’s, 16 ahead of the NDP including our own Newmarket-Aurora) and Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound where Shane Jolley finished a solid second behind the PC incumbent with over 33% of the vote.

So in the end result, what will we have for the next four years?

• $40 billion wasted on nuclear power over 20 years.




• Continued discrimination in Ontario schools by segregating students along religious lines.




• Continued half-hearted efforts to reduce greenhouse gases.  All talk, no action.




• Continued subsidized electricity rates, with Ontarians fooled into thinking electricity is cheap while they pay anyway through other taxes.

Now on to the next battle.  Is a federal election looming?