Electoral Reform: Here are the Proposals from the New Democrats Party

The New Democrats officially submitted their electoral reform proposals to the Prime Minister’s Office on Thursday. The delegation was led by the party's President, Marie-Véronique Leu Govind, accompanied by Secretary General Zapheer A. Futloo, Public Relations Officer Maxime Julien Olivier Permal, and members of the Women Democrats and Young Democrats, including Shakeel Ah Seek, Émilie Soogund, Yash Mohundin, and Louis-Yannick Kistihurry.

Through this submission, the New Democrats reaffirm their commitment to contributing constructively to a balanced, inclusive electoral reform that respects the democratic stability of the country, while addressing contemporary expectations regarding representativeness, transparency, and equality of voices.

In a statement, the New Democrats argue that electoral reform should not be dictated by immediate political interests but should be based on broad democratic consensus, placing citizens at the heart of the decisions shaping the future of the Republic.

1. Reduction in the number of MPs per constituency: A change from three to two MPs per constituency, elected by first-past-the-post (FPTP), while maintaining the current number of constituencies.

2. Introduction of a proportional representation (PR) component: Allocation of 20 parliamentary seats via national proportional representation to parties receiving at least 7% of the votes, to better reflect the actual choices of voters.

3. Gradual absorption of the Best Loser System (BLS): A gradual integration of the corrective logic of the BLS into the proportional mechanism, avoiding abrupt removal while slowly moving away from community-based classifications.

4. Strengthening the representation of women in Parliament: A clear commitment to a minimum target of 30% female MPs to address a persistent democratic deficit and meet Mauritius's international commitments.

5. Promotion of youth representation: Holding political parties accountable for identifying, training, and promoting young candidates, supported by opportunities from proportional representation, without resorting to mandatory quotas.

6. In-depth reform of political financing: Establishing a framework based on transparency, limiting private and corporate influence, protecting constitutional freedoms, and implementing credible control and sanction mechanisms.

7. Strengthening the Electoral Commission and the Electoral Supervisory Commission: Modernizing and expanding the powers of these institutions to ensure better oversight of the electoral process, political financing, and adherence to electoral rules.

8. Organization of a national referendum on electoral reform: Submitting any major electoral reform for direct approval by the people before the first reading of the bill, to ensure democratic legitimacy and respect the principle of popular sovereignty.