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Elections

How to 'Fix' Big Ridings

Give rural voters more service, not more MLAs.

Rafe Mair 24 Mar 2008TheTyee.ca

Rafe Mair writes a Monday column for The Tyee. Read previous columns by Rafe Mair here.

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Why should some voters have more clout?

We must, in examining the controversial new electoral map, understand that MLAs perform two functions. First, they do what they're told and support their party no matter what they think or what their constituents think. When MLAs talk of voting with their conscience, it's less persuasive than "your cheque is in the mail."

Their second job is to help their constituents deal with the government. Why can't Bloggs have a liquor license? Why hasn't the single parent with a bunch of kids got his/her welfare cheque? May we in the One-Eyed South American Butterfly Club please have some money? This is not an unimportant duty because people do have real problems dealing with the government and its Crown agencies and corporations.

The new constituency map has been fraudulently argued not just at the political level but also by the media. It is solemnly intoned that large, sparsely populated ridings are too large to be allotted seats on the same basis as urban ridings. Never mind that new rural ridings will elect MLAs with half the votes of urban ridings. These constituencies, we're told, are just too big to be serviced under the democratic principle of one person, one vote with all votes equal no matter where they're cast.

Serious about servicing citizens?

Overlooking for a moment the argument about representation in the House, let's deal with "servicing" the riding. No one, least of all I who represented what was then a very large riding, would deny that bringing service to far-flung constituencies is tough. I agree that this must be taken into account.

The answer to this problem is simple.

Virtually all constituency work is done by the staff in the constituency office. The MLA must show his face from time to time, but he or she doesn't do the work. During my time -- when the Kamloops constituency went to Blue River to the north, halfway to Merritt to the south, Monte Creek to the east, Logan Lake to the southwest and Savona to the west -- there was no way I could spend the time in these areas that I would have liked. I was in cabinet the entire time and was away a great deal. My constituency secretary and my executive assistant did the work and did it well. I agree that's a problem, but it's one with a very simple solution: simply create more constituency offices in large ridings so people only need to travel relatively short distances to their MLA's office and his or her secretary, who deals with matters between voters and the government and is in frequent contact with the MLA.

This won't give all people in all rural ridings the access one has in, say, North Vancouver, but people in remote areas know that living away from smog, cars and drive-by shootings gives them a better and safer lifestyle.

Too much clout

There is no decent argument that says rural ridings need more political clout per voter than urban ridings do. Why should my vote be worth only half of that in Northern B.C.? The law allows a 25 per cent variation, and to my mind that's way too high.

Yes, special allowances must be made for special areas but giving them extra political clout is not one of them. (I use "political clout" in the sense that they need fewer votes to elect their favourite legislative toady than more populated areas do.) Extra MLAs is not the answer. Better access to services is the answer. By all means, large rural communities should have that, and the small extra cost would be worth it.

A simple and effective idea. No wonder the politicians ignore it.

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