June 16, 2014
Internet-Mana pushes for lower vote limit
Internet Mana has launched an online petition calling for the end of the coat-tailing provision that allows a party that wins an electorate set to bring other MPs into Parliament.
The alliance is counting on the provision go bring extra MPs into parliament if Mana leader Hone Harawira retains Te Tai Tokerau, even if the parties’ combined vote doesn’t cross the 5 percent threshold for list-only parties.
But Internet Party leader Laila Harre says they would prefer a threshold of 3 percent or lower, so everyone’s vote counts.
She says most countries with proportional representation systems have low or no thresholds.
"The original royal commission that recommended MMP recommended 4 per cent but they also said that a kaupapa Maori party should not have to face a threshold. The two big parties then got together in parliament and put a 5 per cent threshold in place and the single seat coat – tails provision because it served their interests they wanted to keep the competition out of parliament." she says.
Laila Harre says under the current system a person can win a single electorate with less than 7000 votes, but a party could poll more than 100,000 votes and still not have a seat in parliament.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH LAILA HARRE CLICK ON THE LINK
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