Elected Assemblies are today based upon the principle of "one person, one vote." This has never meant absolute parity in the number of voters in each electoral district. To give only one example from outside the NWT, in 1989 electoral districts in British Columbia ranged in size from 5,511 persons (Atlin) to 68,347 (Surrey-Newton), with an average of 41,873 per district.
The enactment of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982 has meant that the population sizes of electoral districts must correspond more closely to the average. This is now evident from a number of court cases. "Equality" of voting power has not been upheld, but "relative parity," balanced with a recognition of the need for "effective representation," has.