From Christine Blizzard's post in the Toronto Sun
Frankly, as a woman I am offended by that and find it patronizing. If I can't survive the same nomination and electoral process as a man, then I wouldn't want to be elected to the same office. I certainly wouldn't want to be on the lower level of what will certainly be a two-tier system.
What makes the MMP system "two-tiered", exactly? Is there one system for the rich, and one for the poor? Is there one for the men, and one for the women?
No. It's the same system for everyone.
Under MMP, female candidates will have to learn the same strategies as men to get elected. Some parties may decide to pander to the feminist vote and purposely add women to their selection of "list" candidates. And some may not. If a woman is offended by such a tactic, then she has the freedom not vote for the party that espouses that tactic. But parties will still have the option of treating men and women the same, according to their merit.
The bottom line is that MMP will implement rep by pop. This is a far more fair system than electing a majority government based on 39% of the vote.
I get the impression that some people think that MMP is about implementing political correctness. It's not. We can get legislatures that are 100% male and white, if that's what we want. It's not guarantee of any kind of "minority" representation. However, the FPTP system has not served opponents of political correctness very well. So why keep it?
MMP will more closely reflect the opinion of the electorate in the Legislature, regardless of ideological affiliation. It could mean that some very far-left parties obtain more seats. However, it will also mean that those who are staunch opponents of political correctness have a chance at getting seats as well. The system will result in greater ideological diversity among elected officials, which can only be a good thing. People who feel politically disaffected by the current system have every reason to vote for MMP.
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