ANALYSIS: Beaches—East York proves it: nomination meetings stink 

Political parties are running roughshod over the entry point to our democracy. Maybe we shouldn’t let them.

There’s a hypocrisy over how political parties open their doors (or don’t) to people who want to get involved in politics, and it really needs further unmasking.  

The road to running for Parliament, provincially or federally, almost always starts with trying to win a party nomination. (Yes, people can run as independents, but independents almost never win.)  

You would think the parties would want to encourage citizens to come forward, sign up supporters, create interest, and encourage people to offer themselves for office. Former prime minister John Turner used to say, “Democracy doesn’t happen by accident; you’ve got to participate!”   

But if the way some parties organize their nomination meetings is any indication, they’d much prefer to remain a closed shop.   

Yet again, we’re hearing complaints that one of this country’s major parties has neglected to let appropriate democratic practices take their course. Some are grumbling that a […] This is an excerpt. Read the full article at TVO.org.