06) SONA CASE JUST SCRATCHES SURFACE

 

People's Voice Editorial

 

            While welcome, the guilty verdict against Tory slimeball Michael Sona leaves many questions about the 2011 election, when the Harper Conservatives won a majority with less than 40 percent of the popular vote. As the Council of Canadians points out, electoral fraud was observed in 246 federal ridings, not just Guelph where Sona and his robocall buddies gleefully sabotaged the right to cast a ballot. Legal challenges in six other ridings may yet give a clearer picture of Conservative tactics in that campaign.       

 

            The Federal Court found in 2013 that fraudulent calls misdirected non-Conservative voters in dozens of ridings, most likely using the Conservative Party's database. The Tories are widely suspected of using U.S. Republican-style voter suppression strategies.

 

            The Un"Fair" Elections Act, which was adopted in June, is a prime example. Despite some important amendments after a public outcry, the law forbids Elections Canada from promoting voting, and tightens the guidelines on proving residency to vote. The Act targets sections of the population who are least likely to vote Conservative, including students, Aboriginal people, and low-income earners, and makes it harder for the Chief Electoral Officer to report on complaints from voters. The Act will be challenged in court, hopefully in time for the 2015 campaign.

 

            But there are other huge hurdles to electoral democracy, especially the first-past-the-post system. Without some form of proportional representation, voters in many ridings have little incentive to even go to the polls. Just as important, the corporate media almost universally refuses to report on smaller political parties, making it difficult for voters even to learn about alternative candidates on their ballots.

 

            Without serious reforms, the electoral system will remain heavily tilted in favour of the ruling class. That's not a reason to boycott elections, but it is a reason to demand real democracy in Canada.

 

 

(The above article is from the September 1-15, 2014, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading socialist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)