Ontario is not a
representative democracy
Ontario is not a
representative democracy
Embedded Files
representative democracy
Ontario's elections systematically fail to reflect what voters actually want. For eighty years, a voting system designed for an earlier era has silenced millions and concentrated power in few, leaving Ontarians disengaged from their democracy.
This is a choice we can change.
First-past-the-post doesn't just produce unfair outcomes—it poisons politics. It rewards polarization, deepens divides, tempts interference, and tells millions of voters their voice and their ballot doesn't matter. When voters are unheard and unrepresented, they stop voting. When they stop voting, democracy dies.
A reformed electoral system— more proportional while preserving local representation—will give every voter a meaningful say and restore faith in our democracy.
But this won't happen by accident. It requires leadership, cooperation across party lines, and a commitment to democratic renewal above partisan advantage.
The time to act is now. The leadership campaign is our first window. The next is our AGM and policy convention. And the next election is our opportunity to make it happen.
The OLP's need and opportunity
The OLP's need and opportunity
It’s clear that there are serious problems with our current voting system. For Ontario Liberals, these problems have become increasingly obvious in the wake of the last three elections, in which the OLP’s presence at Queen’s Park has been reduced to a third of what the popular vote would call for.
The politics of electoral reform have made it challenging to reform our electoral system anywhere in Canada so far. However, the current situation in Ontario, in which all three opposition parties share an interest in reform, creates a special opportunity for overcoming such constraints. The parties need to work together before, during and after the next election to effect change.
Our recommendation is for the OLP to put electoral reform in its platform in collaboration with like-minded provincial parties.
2025 OLP AGM survey on democratic reform
2025 OLP AGM survey on democratic reform
This survey was promoted at the Ontario Liberal Party (OLP) AGM in Toronto from Sept. 12-14, 2025 by two teams of volunteers: one from Revitalizing Our Democracy (ROD) and one from Liberals for Electoral Reform. The two teams collaborated in the drafting of the survey form and will continue to work together. We received 129 responses from 57 different ridings. Click here to see a summary of the survey results.
Why and how the OLP should lead
on electoral reform
Why and how the OLP should lead
on electoral reform
Explainer: Why and how the OLP should lead on electoral reform
A Policy Resolution: A Leadership Role on Electoral Reform
This “Why and how" explainer describes in clear, practical terms why this is happening, how proportional representation works better in the most advanced democracies, and why the current moment in Ontario creates a rare opportunity for Liberal‑led reform.
Ontario now has a rare opening: all three opposition parties share an interest in reform, and the Ontario Liberal Party can unlock change by committing to a fair, proportional system that preserves local representation and the direct election of MPPs.
The proposed “Leadership Role on Electoral Reform” policy resolution asks Liberals to make electoral reform a priority, work with the NDP and Greens on a shared reform platform, and engage citizens in designing a simple, voter‑friendly proportional model that finally gives every vote real weight.
2027 OLP AGM & Policy Convention
May 28 to 30, 2027 in Ottawa.
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