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“The population of the orange portion of this map is enough to change the voting system for all of B.C.,” the map says.

It’s a reference to the referendum recently announced by the NDP government to change the system for electing members of the B.C. legislature. The mail-in referendum will be held in the fall of 2018 and will ask British Columbians if they want to switch to a proportional-representation voting system.

A pro-rep system would give a huge political advantage to smaller parties like the B.C. Green party. If the Greens significantly increase their number of MLAs, they could continue their minority governing alliance with the New Democrats and freeze the Liberals out of power.

No wonder the map shows Metro painted orange — the official colour of the NDP!

Is it possible that this one region could decide the voting system for the entire province? Statistically, yes.

The government has announced the referendum will pass if just a bare majority of ballots — 50 per cent plus one — are cast in favour of PR.

Metro contains more than half of the 4.6-million population of the entire province, meaning Metro voters could tilt the referendum result. This regional imbalance is why the previous Liberal government required a double “super-majority” in two earlier referendums on PR. In both those previous votes, the threshold for the referendum to pass was set at 60 per cent overall, plus at least half the votes in 60 per cent of the province’s electoral districts.