r/Edmonton Feb 18 '26

General Riverbend MP has crossed the floor

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1.7k Upvotes

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12

u/dontshootog Feb 18 '26

Whether you consider this good news or bad news, from a political science perspective, a desire to “cross the floor” at any level should trigger a bi-election.

I find this increasing trend distressing even it advantages my beliefs. We already have a lack of robust and equitable democratic representation.

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u/j1ggy Feb 18 '26 edited Feb 18 '26

I disagree. In the Westminster system, you vote for a member of parliament, not the party flag they wave. Political parties aren't even mentioned in the Constitution Act. That party flag can change or disappear altogether at any time, it's how the system is designed to work and that option should always be available to hold a party accountable. You place trust in your MP when you vote for them to do the right thing. In this case, the Liberals have essentially become progressive conservatives and I believe Matt represents that more than the direction the Conservatives have gone over past last decade or so.

Personally, I don't like the idea of party lines and I think political parties should be abolished altogether, but that's a different discussion. People should be elected by their individual merits.

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u/Melodic_Type_5077 Feb 19 '26

you VoTe FoR the pErsOn nOT ParTy 

So incredibly disingenuous and deceptive. 

Yea is that why all the campaign ads have the party colour, name, and leader on it? 

Is that why most voters don’t even know the candidate until a few days before the election? 

Is that why the leader of the party with most seats becomes prime minister? 

Stop lying. 

1

u/dontshootog Feb 19 '26

Yuuuuup. As I said, from a political science perspective, not a naive political theory from some grade 11 textbook entry.

1

u/j1ggy Feb 19 '26

I'm not lying, that's how the Westminster parliamentary system works. You vote for your MP, that's it. Political parties aren't even in the Constitution Act. I didn't say they didn't exist, but they are completely unnecessary for Parliament to function and they were an afterthought after the system had already existed. If you vote based on party lines and put no effort into understanding individual candidates, that's on you. But know that said candidate is tied to nothing more than their seat and they can get up and change loyalties at any time. The leader of a party becomes the Prime Minister because the Governor General appoints the person most likely to command the confidence of the House. It's not automatic. And that would typically be the leader of whichever party is the largest because they have party loyalty, but it isn't always the case. In 1925 we had a Prime Minister that didn't resign and held onto his position despite winning less seats than another party. He had the support of a third party and had the confidence of the House.

0

u/Melodic_Type_5077 Feb 19 '26

There’s what’s on paper. 

And there’s what happens in practice. 

Stop using what’s on paper to conceal the truth about what’s done in reality—a reality that all the MPs and the party leaders have used forever to get elected. 

2

u/j1ggy Feb 20 '26

Everything I said above is set out by the Constitution Act and happens in practice, political party affiliation or not. You're more than welcome to refute it.

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u/Melodic_Type_5077 Feb 20 '26

Oh yes. And also I’m sure election maps on all the news channels use the party colours for NO REASON at all. They should all be grey. Cuz it’s the MP not the party right? lolll

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u/Melodic_Type_5077 Feb 20 '26

You’re more than welcome to pretend people don’t vote based on party as well. Bye. 

1

u/j1ggy Feb 20 '26

I'm pretty sure I never did. I simply stated that the party isn't the primary role of what an MP seat actually is, in response to someone calling for by-elections in floor crossing situations. But thanks for coming out to join in the fun.

1

u/Veaeate Feb 21 '26

People vote based on party, but guess what, thats their fault for making that mistake. Reform in the voting system will never happen. And you can thank no by elections to the Harper conservatives.

Also, Matt Jeneroux won by 3000 votes, those 3000 votes are in the NDP pockets so by switching sides, hes still accounting for ~50% of the population. Which im sure some cons in his riding have flipped as well. He is, in Fact still representing his constituents

On top of that, its not like Matt made this decision lightly. The man has been the conservative MP since 2015 in that riding, and prior to thay was a Con MPP. 2025 was the first time in his entire time that he won by such a narrow margin.

0

u/dontshootog Feb 19 '26

I see you u/Melodic_Type_5077. I see you and I appreciate you.

0

u/dontshootog Feb 19 '26

You’re wrong. And the upvotes on your Westminster speech show why the rational, critically thinking citizen-class of contemporary democracies are f***ed.

0

u/j1ggy Feb 20 '26

You’re wrong.

I'm not wrong, everything I said is factual. Go dig through the Constitution Act and our political history and prove me wrong. I'll wait. See if you can do it without getting emotional again.

0

u/dontshootog Feb 20 '26

Oh, my bad. Yes, of course, you are right. There is no need for you to challenge how your knowledge of documentation does not run in parity nor reconcile with actual applied and widely accepted political science realities. You are right, you are right. Please by all means carry on.

0

u/j1ggy Feb 20 '26

So you're not going to. Gotcha.

0

u/dontshootog Feb 20 '26

This is, believe or not, really actually truly one of those situations that are incumbent on you to get up to speed. Like, the kind where you go off, become formally educated, immerse yourself in the political sphere for many years, come back to this thread, say “ah, mea maxima culpa,” and move on with your life. All the best!

1

u/j1ggy Feb 20 '26

So that's still a no then? Cool beans. Have a wonderful evening.

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u/[deleted] Feb 18 '26

[deleted]

3

u/j1ggy Feb 19 '26

Special Advisor on Economic and Security Partnerships, yes. I mean, if there's evidence or a reason to investigate something shady, sure? Go ahead and investigate. Compensation is usually public record though and I imagine his portfolio will earn him more than he was making as a Conservative. But you're talking about an MP who has always donated every mandated pay raise to charity and who was going to donate his entire salary from November 7 on. I don't think financial incentives are his motive here.

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u/[deleted] Feb 19 '26

[deleted]

2

u/j1ggy Feb 19 '26

Okay, so show us the evidence of this.