With the federal Electoral Boundaries Commission set to redraw Canada's riding map, Ontarians can expect to send another 15 politicians - including at least one more from Ottawa - to the Hill come the next general election.
The commission announced recently that 10 independent commissions - one for each province - have been created to review Canada's federal electoral districts. As Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon constitute one electoral district each, they don't require these commissions.
Electoral boundary reviews are constitutionally mandated every 10 years to take into account demographic shifts and population changes, but the commission's announcement also follows the House of Commons' approval in December of Bill C-20, the Fair Representation Act.
The legislation allows for increasing the number of MPs to 338 from the current 308. These changes will take effect in the next federal election, slated for October 2015.
Once the maps have been rework, Ontario will have 15 new ridings - an increase to 121 from 106 - while Alberta and British Columbia will each receive an additional six seats. Quebec gets the other three new seats.
The City of Ottawa will likely get at least one of Ontario's new ridings, thanks in large part to its burgeoning population. The question, of course, is where any new Ottawa-area riding will be located.
Arguably, one of the ridings most likely to be affected is Nepean-Carleton, held by Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre. The riding covers Barrhaven, Manotick and much of the area south of the city. The population has grown sharply in recent years and now ranks as one of the most populous electoral districts in the province.
Asked to comment about a possible reconfiguration of Nepean-Carleton, Poilievre wouldn't speak directly to the Citizen on Thursday, saying through a member of his staff that "he can't comment on anything he hasn't seen."
Adjusting the boundary of an electoral district is certainly a sensitive topic, touching everything from cartography and demographics to party politics and community identity. For example, in 2004, the Township of Mississippi Mills objected to being attached to an "Ottawa-focused riding" when the former riding of Carleton-Lanark was renamed Carleton-Mississippi Mills. The town council even voted to be moved out of the riding and into the same riding as the rest of Lanark County.
Tory MP Gordon O'Connor represents Carleton-Mississippi Mills. He could not be reached for comment.
However, Steve Liakos, president of the Conservative riding association for Carleton-Mississippi Mills, said Thursday he was not concerned about future changes to the riding. "Whatever they (the electoral commission) do, we're comfortable with it. If they split up the riding we'll work with it."
The formula for allocating seats in the House of Commons is generally based on dividing the provincial population by the "electoral quotient," which is currently 111,166 but subject to adjustment.
However, readjusting Ontario's federal electoral boundaries is not simply an exercise in arithmetic whereby each riding ends up with roughly the same number of seats.
It is also a costly exercise. Geoffrey Stevens, a political scientist at Wilfred Laurier and Guelph Universities, recently estimated that it costs about $1 million a year to pay for a parliamentarian's salary, pension, staff wages, travel and office expenses.
The Ontario electoral commission is inviting citizens to help shape the initial boundary proposals by mail or email before April 30.
Original Article
Source: ottawa citizen
Author: Robert Sibley
The commission announced recently that 10 independent commissions - one for each province - have been created to review Canada's federal electoral districts. As Nunavut, the Northwest Territories and the Yukon constitute one electoral district each, they don't require these commissions.
Electoral boundary reviews are constitutionally mandated every 10 years to take into account demographic shifts and population changes, but the commission's announcement also follows the House of Commons' approval in December of Bill C-20, the Fair Representation Act.
The legislation allows for increasing the number of MPs to 338 from the current 308. These changes will take effect in the next federal election, slated for October 2015.
Once the maps have been rework, Ontario will have 15 new ridings - an increase to 121 from 106 - while Alberta and British Columbia will each receive an additional six seats. Quebec gets the other three new seats.
The City of Ottawa will likely get at least one of Ontario's new ridings, thanks in large part to its burgeoning population. The question, of course, is where any new Ottawa-area riding will be located.
Arguably, one of the ridings most likely to be affected is Nepean-Carleton, held by Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre. The riding covers Barrhaven, Manotick and much of the area south of the city. The population has grown sharply in recent years and now ranks as one of the most populous electoral districts in the province.
Asked to comment about a possible reconfiguration of Nepean-Carleton, Poilievre wouldn't speak directly to the Citizen on Thursday, saying through a member of his staff that "he can't comment on anything he hasn't seen."
Adjusting the boundary of an electoral district is certainly a sensitive topic, touching everything from cartography and demographics to party politics and community identity. For example, in 2004, the Township of Mississippi Mills objected to being attached to an "Ottawa-focused riding" when the former riding of Carleton-Lanark was renamed Carleton-Mississippi Mills. The town council even voted to be moved out of the riding and into the same riding as the rest of Lanark County.
Tory MP Gordon O'Connor represents Carleton-Mississippi Mills. He could not be reached for comment.
However, Steve Liakos, president of the Conservative riding association for Carleton-Mississippi Mills, said Thursday he was not concerned about future changes to the riding. "Whatever they (the electoral commission) do, we're comfortable with it. If they split up the riding we'll work with it."
The formula for allocating seats in the House of Commons is generally based on dividing the provincial population by the "electoral quotient," which is currently 111,166 but subject to adjustment.
However, readjusting Ontario's federal electoral boundaries is not simply an exercise in arithmetic whereby each riding ends up with roughly the same number of seats.
It is also a costly exercise. Geoffrey Stevens, a political scientist at Wilfred Laurier and Guelph Universities, recently estimated that it costs about $1 million a year to pay for a parliamentarian's salary, pension, staff wages, travel and office expenses.
The Ontario electoral commission is inviting citizens to help shape the initial boundary proposals by mail or email before April 30.
Original Article
Source: ottawa citizen
Author: Robert Sibley
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