Government via the Backroom?

I have been taken back by the incessant brouhaha being raised by the opposition parties in their quest to gain power, without the necessity of actually getting people to vote for them in an election.

Their most erroneous claim to the righteousness of this planned coalition of the left is that more than 60% of those voting did not vote for the Conservatives. True; but also true is that far more did not vote for the Liberals or the NDP either.

A summary of all elections since 1867 provides some interesting facts.

• In 1872 was the first election won with less than 50% when the Conservatives got 49.9, Liberals 49.1% and other 0.9%.
• In 1895, it happened again, for last time for 26 years, Conservatives - 46.3%, Liberals - 40.7 & other - 2.9%
• 1921 saw the Liberals get 40.7% while the Conservatives got 30.3% and the Progressives 21.1% and other 7.9%. No doubt, the seed that built the Progressive Conservative Party.
• From 1921 until this year there has only been thee elections won with 50% or more votes going to the winning party; 1949 with Liberals - 50.1, 1958 with Conservative - 53.7% and in 1984 with Conservatives - 50.0%.

Indeed, since 1993, the beginning of the Chrétien era, of the highest percentage attained by a governing party was the Liberals 41.3% in that year. Using the Coalitionist’s current argument all governments since Mulroney’s 1984 one should have been coalitions.

From my perspective, Canada has done well by a system that relied primarily on political parties developing platforms that appealed to a coalition of voters built before an election and not by backroom decisions after the election. 

Comments

[casual observer]

I just don't get why the opposition to a coalition. Your only point is that we have always done government this way...so what...imagine a world where nothing new was tried (perhaps Sir John A could have been mummified and still be the PM today#...and there is a precedent...the Liberal/NDP 1985 accord in Ontario...#the NDP, I think learned from their mistake of not demanding a formal coalition...in the United Stated Obama is forming a made broadly based government...lets not let the Yanks get the better of us politically
Canadians have done a lot of thinking about PR based government...well its seems to me that a formal coalition make be the most practical way to accomplish this...as for democracy...the combined 46 per cent who voted Liberal and NDP are a larger chunk of the vote that the 38 per cent that voted PC...and while you can't please all of the people all of the time the coaltion should be able to please more of the people some of the time

[casual commenter]

I dunno Casual Observer ... a Parliamentary insurrection during a time of war is treasonous, in fact it's High Treason.

[casual observer]

ok...but since when has Canada been at war...surely you don't call that pointless exercise in Afghanistan war