#3 Progress & Development

Design, Tools & Smarter Scoring

Over the past few weeks, the Governance Strength Index (GSI) has undergone a comprehensive update — one aimed at making the platform more intuitive, transparent, and informative for anyone interested in holding elected officials to a higher standard.

This is only made possible by highly targeted critiques provided by individuals seeing the project for the first time and projecting their real life experiences onto it. These actionable insights are invaluable to create a better experience for everyone, and we are very grateful (Fail fast, iterate often).

🔍 Search, Share, and Explore — Faster Than Ever

One of the most noticeable upgrades is our overhauled search tool.

Visitors can now quickly find a candidate by name and instantly view their GSI card — with the page URL updating live to reflect the selected profile.

This change isn’t just aesthetic — it enables seamless sharing of individual scorecards via direct links. Whether you're referencing a candidate in a discussion or sharing their profile with your network, it's now easier to land on the right page, every time.

🧠 Smarter Scoring — and a Look Ahead

Beyond design, we’ve continued refining how scores are calculated.

Most notably, we’re exploring the addition of a Responsibility / Seniority Score — a proposed metric designed to account for the highest level of office or role a candidate has held.

Why add this?

Because responsibility comes with context. A Cabinet Minister, for example, may not have the same time or opportunity to sponsor private bills or engage in opposition debates — yet their influence and accountability are significantly elevated.

This metric, if introduced, would offer a small boon to a candidate’s overall score based on the seniority of their role, helping offset lower scores in other categories where high-responsibility positions may naturally be at a disadvantage.

We’re still workshopping the model — and as always, will prioritize transparency and measurability in how it's implemented.

💡 What’s Next?

The GSI Report is still evolving — and we’re listening. Upcoming additions may include:

• Side-by-side candidate comparison tools

• Expanded FAQ and methodology sections - with new Navigation improvements as requested by users

• Regional filters for provincial vs federal roles

  
  

We’re also continuing to monitor feedback on the Charter Compliance metric and other governance-based scores as we refine the balance between objectivity and public accountability. Some feedback suggests it should be harsher, while some argue that the issues being targeted are not actually charter violations. The/ a solution will require further discussions and thought.

One metric we are still looking to target is a candidates 'availability' tracking elements such as town hall engagement, interviews, etc. This however has proved difficult to track consistently and continues to elude us for the moment. We will continue to seek the help of the community to develop a means of implementing this important metric.

Thanks for Building With Us

GSI was born out of a desire to cut through political noise and measure elected officials by their record — not just their rhetoric. These improvements represent a step forward in that mission.

As always thanks for all of your support, at this early stage sharing these cards, and sharing your feedback are the most useful tools available to us. We’re excited to keep building — and grateful to have you along for the ride.