Some groups, notably the Green Party of Ontario, had sought an Ontario electoral reform referendum, 2006 to be held alongside the Ontario municipal elections, 2006 in November 2006. While there were some concerns about the logistics of this, it is up to Ontario how to organize and run municipal elections, legally, and so if it chooses to attach any province-wide referendum question to those elections, it may do so. The NB electoral reform referendum, 2008 will be scheduled alongside NB's own municipal vote.

The main reason advocates preferred this option was that to wait for the Ontario general election, 2007 would be to ensure that no reforms take effect until the election after that, which is a fixed election date?: October 2011. It did not seem feasible given the strong support for major electoral reform in Ontario, to let this be put off to such a far future date, since a majority government? elected in 2007 by a system that would simultaneously be rejected by the public, would have no clear mandate to rule the province at all. This is a dangerous situation for any government.

This argument was advocated in The Empire of Neighbours, a position paper commissioned by the GPO President in spring 2005. It was subsequently accepted and advocated by both candidates for GPO President, Judy Greenwood-Speers and Hayley Easto. The former won and did nothing about the earlier date whatsoever.

Meanwhile, some people were advocating to put off the referendum until 2007, at great risk to the credibility and legitimacy of the Ontario government, and indeed at risk of Ontario breaking up or the pace of federal electoral reform? slacking to the point that another Quebec sovereignty referendum? would be successful.

In 2005, Ontario tabled legislation to initiate a process similar to BC's. Fair Vote Canada?'s Joe Murray? had "called for 10 specific improvements including:

• Access to a variety of experts: The assembly should have presentations from and ongoing access to a variety of voting system experts, including those with differing opinions. The assembly must be protected from being deliberately or inadvertently steered by staff experts.
• Flexibility on recommendations: Given the recent reduction of seats in the Ontario legislature, the assembly should be allowed to consider models that involve an increase in the number of MPPs. In addition, if the assembly cannot reach a general consensus on the single best alternative voting system, they should be allowed to present two alternatives, with voters using a preference ballot in the referendum to choose among the alternatives and the status quo.
• No super-majority required for adoption: Unlike the BC government, the Ontario government and political parties should not impose a super-majority referendum result for adoption of a new voting system. If the Government claims the right to make binding and far-reaching policy decisions based on simple majority rule, the same standard should apply to citizens."

Fair Vote Ontario and the Green Party of Ontario and Efficient Civics Guild made very similar recommendations.