How can an electoral system be unconstitutional?
In 1982, Canada committed itself to respecting the basic rights and freedoms of all Canadians by enshrining them in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Because the Charter is a part of our constitution, or “supreme law”, any policy or law, or part thereof, which violates those constitutional rights is deemed to be illegal, and cannot be enforced. This means that, if the Canada Elections Act, or parts of it, violate the rights in the Charter, it must be replaced by an electoral law which respects these rights. The claim in this case is that the system which the Canada Elections Act uses to translate votes into seats, which is called a single-member plurality, or winner-take-all, system, violates the right to vote in section 3 of the Charter, and the right of equality in section 15 of the Charter. A law which limits the rights in the Charter may nonetheless be found constitutional and legally valid, as long as the government can justify the limitation under s. 1 of the Charter. In this c
