What voters want don't matter--It's all about Stephen, Jack, and Gilles

I just heard the word: The broadcst consortium that controls these things says Elizabeth is not in the debates because Stephen Harper, Jack Layton, and Gilles Duceppe don't want her there. And what those leaders say apparently matters more than the three quarters of Canadians who DO want to hear what Elizabeth has to say.

Stephen Harper's reason for excluding her is that since the Liberal Party is not running a candidate against her in Central Nova, it’s like having two Liberals in the debates.

By that reasoning, Stephen Harper is a Liberal and shouldn’t be in the debates either. Back in 2002, when he was the newly-minted leader of the Canadian Alliance, he ran unopposed by the Liberals in Calgary South West. There is a long tradition of not opposing party leaders as they run for a seat in Parliament. Mr. Harper enjoyed this courtesy offered by the Liberals; why shouldn’t Elizabeth May?

In the past, other reasons have been trotted out for excluding Elizabeth. The one I heard most often is Greens have no seats in Parliament. Well, now we do. Two weeks ago, Independent Blair Wilson, the MP for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, announced he was moving to the Green Party. Oh, I can hear you thinking, what’s one MP? Surely you need to have more than one seat in the House of Commons to be in the debates? Actually, you don’t. The Reform Party (Stephen Harper’s old party) and the Bloc Quebecois were both allowed in the televised debates with only one MP in Parliament. And let’s not forget how the Progressive Conservatives were beaten back to two seats under Kim Campbell. Did anybody suggest the PCs should sit out the next leaders’ debates because they didn’t have enough seats?

Why is being on the televised debates such a big deal? Most Canadians get the majority of their information on the federal election from television. That’s why Mr. Harper’s Conservatives have traditionally spent so much money on television advertising—because people watch it. The televised debates are the way most undecided voters make up their mind. Television debates can even be the turning point in an election. Brian Mulroney skewering John Turner in 1984 comes to mind.

Most political parties start out small. But like the Bloc and the old Reform Party did, they grow. The Green Party has arrived. We receive federal funding, like the other parties in the debates. We have run candidates across the country in two (soon to be three) elections. We have a charismatic, articulate leader well-versed on the issues important to Canadians: the economy, taxes, health care, the environment, and more. We now have a voice in the House of Commons.

Whether they are for her or against her, most Canadians—more than three quarters of the country’s voters—feel Elizabeth deserves to be in the debates. Unfortunately, it’s not up to them. It’s up to a broadcast consortium of the CEOs of the major network corporations, and Stephen Harper, Jack Layton, and Gilles Duceppe. If that seems wrong to you, contact your MP and tell them you think Elizabeth May has the right to speak.

Message to Mr. Harper, Mr. Layton, and Mr. Duceppe: What the heck are you afraid of?