By Jason Octavo
April 30th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
A lot of people haven’t put their attention yet on the provincial election
I looked people who were out shopping and asked them about the provincial election. Public interest has yet to grow. It is going to be a short election
My assignment was to interview at least twenty people and ask if they knew about the provincial election that is expected to start next Wednesday with the ballots being counted on June 2nd.
Eleven out of the 20 people that I interviewed on the street said they did not know there was going to be a provincial election starting on Wednesday of next week.
Half said they are going to vote.
Only three out of 20 indicated who they were going to vote for.
One person said he knew there was going to be a provincial election, but didn’t know it was starting this coming Wednesday.
Five out of 20 said they are ineligible to vote (Four said they haven’t been in Canada long enough, one said she is underage). Seven out of 20 haven’t decided yet who they are going to vote for.
Having been an active door to door campaigner for several years I am surprised that so many people do not understand the jurisdictions of the various levels of government – many citizens do not even take the time to understand our political system, they just like to complain. If you aren’t informed you get the leadership that others have handed to you.
Another favourite of mine, is voting the way you have always voted: parties have evolved over time. A good example of this is the conservative party that is greatly splintered right now – populist and Trumpish on one hand and reasonably centrist on the other. It is critical to understand how you will be represented. Will you get a seasoned person or someone with no experience who will have to hit the ground running? There are many factors to consider . Voting is a privilege that we are lucky to have in this country, we should be responsible and thoughtful with our choices.