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Wednesday, November 17, 2010 - The Morning Star B13
News
Voting rule change could shift power to Interior JEFF NAGEL Black Press
A tug-of-war between the rural and urban factions of the B.C. Liberal party over voting rules will be critical in deciding the next leader and premier, political analyst David Schreck says. The party executive is considering a move away from the current one-member-one-vote system for choosing a leader to one that would give each of the 85 constituencies equal weight. Schreck believes the proposed change would have a massive impact on the outcome. “The balance of power shifts from the Fraser Valley – Surrey, Langley and Abbotsford – to the Interior,” he said. “It means a member in Bill Bennett’s riding in the Kootenays would have the power of 100 or 200 members in Surrey.” Surrey and Fraser Valley Liberal activists are likely battling behind the scenes to head off a new formula favouring the hinterland, Schreck said. Also to be determined is the date of the leadership convention, the cutoff date for new members to sign up and vote, and whether they’ll have to pay an additional fee to vote at the convention. All three of those variables will affect the influence exerted by political organizers leading any largescale sign-ups and the chances candidates without a strong power base out of the gate could come from behind. The current $10 party membership fee doesn’t give members the right to vote – the constitution says they have to pay a separate fee to actually cast a ballot for leader. “They could say the fee is zero or they could say it’s $100,” Schreck said. “That’s very important.” He said a secondary fee should help rein in mass-signups – especially when an organizer signs up and
pays for others without their knowledge – as it provides another mechanism for the party to verify a member is legitimate. The party also has to decide how much cash each candidate must put up as a deposit to weed out those only
seeking attention and publicity. The deposit fee might be set anywhere between $10,000 and over $100,000, he said. “They clearly have to set a substantial deposit so only serious contenders enter the race.”
Also subject to revision is the current $75,000 leadership campaign spending limit, which Schreck said is outdated and inadequate. Education minister George Abbott’s statement he’ll quit cabinet if he runs highlights
another facet of the race. “If a cabinet minister’s going around the province making announcements on ministry business, he’s also going to increase his exposure and meet party members who may vote for him,”
Schreck said. That opens up any minister who stays in cabinet during the race to accusations of conflict of interest in using public funds to campaign. Those outside cabinet – such as former energy minister Blair
Lekstrom – would be at a disadvantage. “They don’t have equal access to those public resources to campaign for the leadership,” Schreck said, adding Abbott has “set the cat among the pigeons” by make it an issue early.
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