Measuring wasted votes

Just wanted to highlight a couple of great sites done my electoral reformers that illustrate just how many Ontario citizens' votes are "wasted", that is are not counted towards electing an MPP.

But first a little trivia. If all voters in Ontario who cast a wasted vote in the last election got together and held hands, starting at the base of the CN Tower and going up Yonge St., where would the human chain of ignored voters stretch?

a. Vaughn
b. Barrie
c. Sudbury
d. Hudson Bay

If you guessed D, you're right! Over 1.5 million Ontario voters in the election cast votes that elected no one.

If MMP passes on October 10, this number will likely drop down to under 5% of the voting population or around 150,000 voters.

The first site - www.wastedvotes.ca - was done by a frustrated voter in a safe seat who was tired of seeing his vote not elect anyone. It catalogs pretty extensively just how many wasted votes have been cast in recent Ontario and federal elections.

Finally, I just saw this site today, done by another young electoral reform activist with a background in geography. It graphically shows the number of wasted votes in any given riding.