OTA Launch
Press release:
One Time Alliance for Democratic Reform launches campaign to encourage cooperation between NDP and Greens
For immediate release, Sept. 28, 2020
The One Time Alliance for Democratic Reform, a non-partisan citizens' group with a growing membership across Canada, has written to the Federal Executive of the NDP and the Green Party Federal Council, arguing for the parties to cooperate on a “one time” basis in the next federal election.
One of the group’s co-founders, Clive Doucet, explains the rationale for this initiative:
We are alarmed that our planet and our democracy face an existential crisis. We need change and can no longer afford the failings of our first-past-the-post electoral system which deprives progressive parties like the NDP and the Greens of the seats they deserve based on the popular vote. That system elected only 3 Green and 24 NDP MPs in 2019 for a total of 27, compared to the 79 seats they would have won in a proportional system.
Feeling that we cannot go on with business as usual, we argue for a one time alliance of the Greens and the NDP that would allow the two parties to win more seats despite our first-past-the-post electoral system. This would allow the two parties to get the leverage they need in Parliament to reform our electoral system, implement vigorous climate action and deal with important social justice issues.
The group’s Win-win strategy suggests that an alliance of the two parties could make a significant difference by raising the combined seat count of the two parties from 27 to 60 or more.
The One Time Alliance stresses that no one is proposing a merger of the two parties: the Greens and the NDP would maintain their distinct identities, memberships, funds, and MPs.
One Time Alliance member Réal Lavergne fully expects resistance to this idea, but argues, “It’s time for planet over party thinking. We are pleading for the two parties to put the people of Canada and the health of our planet above narrow partisan considerations.”
Acknowledging that “this sort of thing needs to be discussed internally and across parties,” Lavergne says the One Time Alliance is not pressing for an immediate response from the two parties. “Our objective is to get the discussion going.”
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Media Contacts
Clive Doucet, crod@clivedoucet.com, 613-808-0019
Réal Lavergne, reallavergne@yahoo.ca, 613-413-2950