Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48During the 2015 federal election, the Liberal Party pledged that, if elected, they would end the “first past the post” electoral system, where whichever candidate receives the most votes wins a riding even if they have not received a majority of all votes cast. After the Liberals assumed power, Min- ister of Democratic Institutions Maryam Monsef followed up on their campaign promise by an- nouncing a parliamentary committee to evaluate alternative electoral systems and to report their findings before the end of 2016. Challenging the idea that first past the post is obsolete, Should We Change How We Vote? urges Canadians to make sure they understand their elec- toral system before making drastic changes to it. The contributors to this volume assert that there is perhaps no institution more misunderstood and misrepresented than the Canadian electoral system – praised by some for ensuring broad regional rep- resentation in Ottawa, but criticized by others for allowing political parties with less than half the popular vote to assume more than half the seats in Parliament. They consider not only how the system works, but also its flaws and its advantages, and whether or not electoral reform is legitimate with- out a referendum. An essential guide to a crucial debate about the country’s future, Should We Change How We Vote? asks if there are alternative reforms that would be easier to implement than a complete overhaul of the electoral system. Andrew Potter is the director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada. Daniel Weinstock is James McGill Professor in the Faculty of Law at McGill University and director of the McGill Institute for Health and Social Policy. Peter Loewen is director of the School of Public Policy and Governance at the University of Toronto. 4 M Q U P S P R I N G 2 0 1 7 P O L I T I C A L S T U D I E S Should We Change How We Vote? Evaluating Canada’s Electoral System edited by andrew potter, daniel weinstock, and peter loewen An evaluation of the current electoral system in response to calls for its reform. S P E C I F I C AT I O N S Published for the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada April 2017 978-0-7735-4882-4 $19.95A CDN, $19.95A US, £16.99 paper 978-0-7735-5062-9 $75.00S CDN, $75.00S US, £65.00 cloth 6 x 9 176pp eBook available