Sunday, June 20, 2004
Not So Grande Montreal: Despite Barriers Voters Strike a Blow for Democracy
Quebec De-Merger Election Results The Public Purpose Commentary
So, it was surprising when 89 former municipalities were able to produce the required 10 percent of eligible voter signatures in just five days. What is even more surprising is that 32 of the 89 municipalities were able to produce majorities in today’s election so large that the 35 percent of eligible voter threshold required for de-merger was reached. So, with the scales so weighted against democracy that Proposition 13 could never have qualified for the ballot in California and an American president could not have been elected, citizens of Quebec cared enough to produce a clear victory for local control in more than one-third of the cases. Among the soon to be reborn municipalities (pending the pleasure of the government), the average margin of victory was nearly 60 percentage points --- 79.5 percent for de-merger and 20.5 percent against.
So, it was surprising when 89 former municipalities were able to produce the required 10 percent of eligible voter signatures in just five days. What is even more surprising is that 32 of the 89 municipalities were able to produce majorities in today’s election so large that the 35 percent of eligible voter threshold required for de-merger was reached. So, with the scales so weighted against democracy that Proposition 13 could never have qualified for the ballot in California and an American president could not have been elected, citizens of Quebec cared enough to produce a clear victory for local control in more than one-third of the cases. Among the soon to be reborn municipalities (pending the pleasure of the government), the average margin of victory was nearly 60 percentage points --- 79.5 percent for de-merger and 20.5 percent against.
Comments:
Post a Comment
