People who want to see an end, or at least a tweak, to island-wide voting may ultimately be disappointed at last week’s election results.
The problem is that the oft-criticised system gave too many people what it appeared they wanted – the chance to have a jolly good clear out.
An even lower turn-out of voters and more incumbents keeping their seats could have provoked a backlash.
But effectively it proved to be an election where the ability to vote ‘negatively’ reigned, and given the satisfaction prompted by the removals, and more pressing issues facing the new States, those members who were keen on change will now likely be in a minority.
That doesn’t mean that all is well with island-wide voting, far from it. Islanders feel disconnected.
While many were very keen to get informed, the groundswell of anti-GST voting suggests that some kept records or had long memories.
But many were disconnected, while voter numbers, at less than 20,000, were more than disappointing.
The adoption of island-wide voting to empower the electorate now feels more like it has disenfranchised them.
But a ‘successful’ clear-out has seen the case for electoral reform pushed back.
