Burchall Report: PLP Delegates & Votes

August 4, 2010

beremuda vote[Written by Larry Burchall]

One man, one vote, each vote equal value. Between now and the end of October, that is not true. Not true at all.

In October the PLP will hold its annual general conference, and under its constitution every few years its party leadership is up for grabs. With Dr Brown stepping down this year, there has to be a selection of a new leader.

Ordinary voters for whom the “one man, one vote, each vote equal value” mantra is normally true, will discover that at the October 2010 PLP conference, they will have no vote and they will have no value. At this conference, the only people who matter and the only people who can vote are the PLP ‘Delegates’.

Who are the ‘Delegates’? They are people who represent a PLP Constituency. Each of the thirty-six PLP constituencies has the right to select or appoint Delegates. As with all politics and power, the matter of the selection of the actual Delegates who will represent a particular constituency can be done in a completely open and democratic manner; or a strong Constituency Chairperson can ‘strategically arrange’ that only certain persons are finally selected as Delegates. That is how it works at grassroots in all democracies, and this PLP matter is fundamental grassroots.

How many Delegates for each Constituency? For every twenty signed-up and paid-up members, the Constituency can send one Delegate to the Conference.

Is there a cut-off date? Yes. August 31st 2010 for the October 2010 Conference. So a Constituency must have its membership books in order by that date.

How much does it cost to join the PLP? Twenty-five dollars ($25) buys a three year membership. Pay that in to your Constituency Branch officer; or to your PLP MP or your selected PLP candidate (and trust him or her to pay it in on your behalf); or to PLP Headquarters at Alaska Hall for your constituency; or online at www.plp.bm; and you can become a paid-up counted member of the PLP.

If, before 31st August 2010, you become counted as a member of the PLP, you will acquire some value and you will begin to matter. In October, you will have a voice and at least five percent of one vote.

Do Delegates have to vote the way their Constituency has agreed or directed? They should, but at actual voting time, they can differ and disagree and cast a vote that goes against the stance taken by their Constituency. This personal choice allows for the Delegate to vote his conscience and to make changes – as he or she sees fit – on the floor at the Conference.

Who can run for PLP Leader? Any sitting – that is elected – Parliamentarian. So Senators are excluded. There can be two, three, or even more candidates for Party Leader (in 2003 there were three.)

At the October Conference, the PLP will select its next Party Leader. That PLP Leader will become Bermuda’s next Premier. If you do not join or are not a member of any PLP constituency, you will – in October 2010 – be voiceless and powerless.

Bermuda’s next Premier will be selected by the Constituency Delegates and not by popular national vote where “one man, one vote, each vote equal value” prevails. The actual selection process will be a party vote by this select few.

How many Delegates? Assume 12o members in each of the thirty-six constituencies; allow for the Central Committee members; allow for the Parliamentarians. You get fewer than 250 people. It is this small inner-party group that will decide the national matter.

That’s how it works.

So, do you matter? Do you have a voice, or even one twentieth of a voice and vote?

[Editors note: We previously had 1/25 listed incorrectly, this version corrects that]

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Comments (7)

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  1. Kennette J Burgess says:

    WHAT type of article is this? All things aside, this is how is has been done for years.
    The people of Bermuda do count because we vote in the political party, we trust them, and those people who WE elect in turn put in people on our behalf. Simple.

    • Todd says:

      So its ok if “this is how it’s been done for years”? That didn’t work for the Corporations! All your arguements are what the Corporations could easily have used, and did use at certain points. So reform is FORCED on the municipalities, but the PLP can go ahead and Flaunt the “one man one vote” that they supposedly uphold with such reverence….

      • Tired of nonsense says:

        Very true Todd. Great analogy. But as usual it is “do as I say and not as I do” for this administration and their supporters.

        The people of Bermuda, like the US, need to have the ability to choose the leader of our country, instead of a small band of partisan zealots who harbor their own ulterior motives for wanting a certain person in power.

        All Bermuda political parties need serious reform on all levels to ensure that we can be as democratic as possible.

  2. Kennette J Burgess says:

    Talk about putting a spin on things!

  3. Dante says:

    I’m pretty sure that most who say they want a national election process for the Premier of Bermuda’s Government are the same people who want as close a relationship with the UK as possible. This is interesting since the UK’s political parties don’t have national elections to determine who the individual party leaders will be. They, like Bermuda, have party specific mechanisms that determine who will be the country’s prime minister if their group gathers the most parliamentary seats in a general election. Party Delegates vote, Party MP’s vote, some of the general membership votes, not the entire electorate. Canada’s system works similarly as does many nations worldwide, Commonwealth or otherwise.

    No one would ever suggest that this system is perfect, but to suggest it is anachronistic or anomalous and that the Americans have perfected democratic electoral execution is inaccurate.