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News, Press Releases and Campaign Updates

Updates from the campaign.

Canadian Press: B.C. voters on Tuesday can choose the status quo or the STV

Submitted by WordSpring on 11 May 2009 - 9:55am.

VANCOUVER, B.C. — Maintain the status quo - or be an electoral pioneer?

British Columbia voters could make Canadian history and join a small coterie of jurisdictions elsewhere in the world, depending on the referendum decision they make on their ballot Tuesday.

Voters' ballots for the provincial election will contain not only the names of the candidates in their riding, but also a crucial referendum question.

Shoni Field: Doing it for the kids…

Submitted by WordSpring on 10 May 2009 - 7:12pm.

Here's a Mother's Day thought from Citizens' Assembly alumna Shoni Field, who has been one of our highest-profile advocates for the adoption of BC-STV.  

Spending the morning with my kids, and all I want on mother’s day is a democracy they feel is worth participating in. Watching the rates of 18-30 year old voters nosedive election after election, I wonder who will be left voting when my son is eligible to vote?

Irish Expert: STV Works Very Well Here

Submitted by WordSpring on 9 May 2009 - 1:29pm.

This blog article was originally posted by Robert Jago on May 5, in the Canadian Provincial Politics section of The Western Standard

Who Uses a 1-2-3 Voting System? Just About Everyone.

Submitted by Tony Roy on 8 May 2009 - 11:45am.

Who Uses a 1-2-3 Voting System? Just About Everyone.

BC-STV ballot similar to NHL, NBA, Academy Awards ... and most political parties in Canada

Vancouver, B.C. – Ever wonder how Vancouver Canuck Ryan Kesler was selected as a Selke finalist? Or, how the Academy Awards picks its top five nominees in each of its awards categories? Or, what kind of ballot political parties use to choose their leaders or local candidates?

Former Deputy Premier Christy Clark's Change of Heart

Submitted by WordSpring on 8 May 2009 - 5:58am.

Christy Clark, former Deputy Premier, and now host of "The Christy Clark Show" on CKNW, campaigned AGAINST BC-STV in 2005.  Now she is asking everyone to vote YES. Here, from the CKNW website, is the full text of why she has had a change of heart.  The original post is at http://www.cknw.com/blog/christys_bc_15/blogentry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10031397

Why Macleans Magazine's Coyne thinks BCers should vote YES for BC-STV

Submitted by WordSpring on 7 May 2009 - 5:11pm.

BC-STV received a ringing endorsement from one of Canada's best known commentators, Andrew Coyne of Maclean's Magazine.  Whether you agree with his other opinions or not, on BC-STV he is clear that this vote is important, not only for us here in British Columbia, but for the rest of the country as well.  As large numbers of people head to the polls in advance voting this week, please keep in mind that BC-STV is good for fairness, representation and democracy.  And vote YES!

Tales from the Trail: Our TV ads are effective all over BC

Submitted by WordSpring on 7 May 2009 - 8:45am.

Here's Bruce Hallsor, on the road from Kamloops. Thanks, Bruce, for the update!

Watching the local Kamloops news last night, I saw a great piece on STV that used our TV ads as part of the story.  It shows how professional and informative our ads are in comparison to the amateur production value and ridiculous scaremongering of the NO ads.  In my travels over the past week, I have heard lots of people tell me that this is their observation as well.

STV offers hope of better B.C. politics, Paul Willcocks, Vancouver Times Colonist

Submitted by Tony Roy on 7 May 2009 - 6:25am.

STV offers hope of better B.C. politics

Paul Willcocks
Times Colonist

Thursday, May 07, 2009

I spent almost 10 years in the press gallery, watching B.C. politics from a front-row seat.

That's largely why I'm so convinced that you should vote yes in the STV referendum on Tuesday.

NewWest News Leader: The real beneficiaries with BC-STV will be the voters

Submitted by Tony Roy on 7 May 2009 - 6:24am.

The real beneficiaries with BC-STV will be the voters
Updated: May 06, 2009 3:56 PM

When I speak to people about BC-STV, a common question is “who will benefit?”

People want to know if there are vested interests behind this change. Will it make it easier for one party or another to gain control of the legislature?

Some critics suggest BC-STV will make it easier for fringe parties to get elected, but this is untrue. It takes a significant number of votes to get elected with BC-STV, and fringe parties will stay on the fringe.

BC-STV Signs Now Stick Around in Steveston

Submitted by WordSpring on 5 May 2009 - 6:58pm.

Here's another entry from Nick Loenen, who's been on speaking tours around the province, but lives in Richmond.  It's another terrific story of the energy and enthusiasm of our volunteers.

Jim is a wonderful sign master. He had placed a dozen on the grassy median down Steveston Highway (Richmond) for the 3 or 4 city blocks where cars are thicker than ants, 24/7.

There, our signs stood for a week, beacons of democracy, inviting all to Power Up Your Vote! Wonderful, until the Park Board grass-cutting crew threw them aside.

Second BC-STV television ad asks if voters want fair election results or more of the same

Submitted by Tony Roy on 5 May 2009 - 11:34am.

May 5, 2009 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Second BC-STV television ad asks if voters want fair election results or more of the same
Points out contrasts between BC-STV and current electoral system

Our second -- and last, at least for a while -- chance for change

Submitted by Tony Roy on 4 May 2009 - 4:58pm.

Our second -- and last, at least for a while -- chance for change
By Gordon Gibson, Special to the Sun
May 4, 2009

Some rare chances really are "once in a lifetime." For those who care about democracy, just such a chance is scheduled for May 12.

I am not talking about the provincial election itself. Whether the next government is made up of Liberals or New Democrats is important, but also routine. If we make a mistake we will all get another shot at it in another four years.

Tales from the Trail: Who is this STeVe guy, anyway?

Submitted by WordSpring on 4 May 2009 - 3:30pm.

I'm forwarding this from the blog of one of our more active volunteers, Crystal Ocean. Her blog, Challenging the Commonplace, is full of passion and enthusiasm for the BCSCV system.

This hilarious story arrived in my inbox from someone working for their local candidate:

While a fellow campaign worker was in the office, a man called in to say he wasn't happy because there weren't any [John Doe] signs up.

BC Steve and his landslide popularity

Submitted by Deverell on 4 May 2009 - 2:54pm.

From http://challengingthecommonplace.blogspot.com/2009/04/funnies-from-bc-st...

---

While a fellow campaign worker was in the office, a man called in to say he wasn't happy because there weren't any [John Doe] signs up. The worker assured the man that there were and that more would be going up.

The disgruntled supporter responded, "Well there sure aren't as many signs as that Steve guy has."

The worker asked, "What Steve? No one named Steve is running."

"Ya," the man replied, "that BC-Steve or whatever guy. His signs are everywhere!"

---

Feel-good story from Summerland, BC

Submitted by Deverell on 4 May 2009 - 2:07pm.

Volunteers Roy and Laura Roope have been out with signs and posters in the Kelowna area, and are having a lot of success with their signs and posters. Roy writes of his experience at Highway 97 near Summerland:

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