Resisting the pull of cynicism since 1969.

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

In B.C., 'yes' has the edge

With all eyes on the fate of Belinda Stronach's relationship, something truly unprecedented may be happening in British Columbia. And I'm just a little stunned.

See, most of the time I think I've got a pretty good grip on what developments are likely to actually occur and what ones are not. Sometimes, though, something wonderful and completely counter to expectations threatens to happen, and I start feeling like I'm really some closet pessimist in idealistic pragmatist clothing. From the Globe and Mail:

The Yes forces in British Columbia's battle for electoral reform are demanding the newly re-elected Liberal government press ahead with changes to the voting system, despite incomplete results in Tuesday's referendum. Ballot counting was suspended early Wednesday with the Yes side leading in 72 out of 73 ridings that had reported results so far. The province has 79 ridings. To succeed, the referendum proposal that would give Canada its first system of proportional representation needs a simple majority in 48 ridings and a 60 per cent majority in the provincewide popular vote.
On the other hand, the last time something like this happened, I went to bed thinking the federal NDP would almost certainly hold the balance of power in the House of Commons. So I'm just going to go hide with my head under the pillow for a while, would somebody wake me up when all the votes are counted? Thanks.

[Update: The initial counts indicate a majority that falls short of the 60% threshhold, with a final vote count to follow on the 30th.]

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