After targeting a neighbouring constituency in November, an advocacy group calling for reforms to the province's electoral financing laws will be sending postcards in the next week or so promoting its cause to voters in Prince George-Mackenzie.
The postcards, from IntegrityBC, depict Premier Christy Clark as a NASCAR race car driver in a uniform splashed with the corporate logos of donors to her 2011 leadership campaign.
"Each logo represents a donation of more than $7,500," IntegrityBC said Friday in a press release.
"Together they represent over $200,000 in donations and are on top of other donations these same companies may have made to the B.C. Liberal party in 2011."
The postcards are part of a province-wide campaign calling for a ban on corporate and union funding of political parties, a cap on personal donations and a Citizen's Assembly to study and make binding recommendations on a host of additional reforms.
Reached Friday, Prince George-Mackenzie MLA Pat Bell said the more important issue in terms of financing is transparency and claimed B.C. has one of the most transparent systems in Canada.
"Every single donation that is made to any political party, whether it be funded through a union organization, an individual or company, is fully disclosed and available as public information on all of the normal websites.
"I think we have a good system. Companies are allowed to donate, unions are allowed to donate, individuals are allowed to donate and I think that if you can't go out and raise money to get yourself elected then you'd probably better look at your support structure and whether or not you really have the level of support that you need to represent the public."
Asked if he's had feedback from constituents on electoral financing, Bell said he can honestly say it almost never comes to his attention.
"In 11 years of politics, I've never had a single person stop me on the street and say 'you know what, you should deal with the issues around electoral financing," Bell said. "There are lots of things we need to focus our intention on, including economic development and health care and education and social services, and this one doesn't even come close to the list of the top 10 in most people's minds."
To begin either late next week or early the week after, it's IntegrityBC's second mail drop in the Prince George area after an earlier mailout in Prince George-Valemount. MLA Shirley Bond said at the time that while the government is always open to suggestions on improving the way elections are run it's "not contemplating changes to electoral finances."
The organization has devoted a section of its website, www.integritybc.ca, to the issue which includes downloadable posters, a brochure, backgrounder and an extensive resource centre with additional reports, surveys, court judgements and videos.
