Vote like your life depends on it — because it does

Vote like your life depends on it — because it does

I genuinely believe that this election is very different — the most unique federal election in my lifetime — because of the fact that Canada is the victim of an unjust trade war, and the lunatic currently running the United States into the ground intends on expanding America’s territory through bullying, if not outright force.

I have never voted in an election where so much of what’s at stake is being decided by forces outside the country. Hopefully, none of us will ever be put in this situation again.

Even if you’re not impressed with any of the campaigns and you hate politics and politicians with a passion, I nonetheless strongly encourage you to vote. The stakes are indeed very high this time around. The person who becomes prime minister will have to deal with one of the very worst people on Earth right now, as he attempts to destroy the global economy and annex Canada. We need a very strong leader for the next four years, someone we can trust to defend our national interests and our sovereignty. Irrespective of who gets elected, the next four years are going to be rough because of problems stemming from south of the border. Brace yourself — this is going to be a very bumpy ride. Experience and a clearly articulated vision for the future of Canada is worth much more than slogans and culture war virtue signalling.

Don’t waste your vote. Take the time to make a shortlist of the parties and candidates whose values, ideas and policy proposals align with your own. Rank the candidates based on who speaks most to your values, and then try to determine their chance of winning your riding. Even if your candidate or party doesn’t win, you’ll likely — at a minimum — feel some satisfaction in having participated in the democratic process.

There’s a good chance your riding may be leaning heavily in the direction of a certain candidate, and you may feel like your choice won’t matter. This is not necessarily true, and you should vote anyway.

The utility of your vote counts in several ways. If it supports the winning candidate, then great — you voted for the person who won. That’s a win-win, and that’s especially true if it’s a close race. If you vote for a candidate who doesn’t win, that, too, may be important. If it’s a close race, the party you support may keep it in mind for the next election, and try harder to win. And even if it isn’t close, the percentage of the popular vote your party secures may determine funding or whether they participate in the next round of federal leaders’ debates. And if the person who’s likely to win in your riding isn’t your preferred choice, but in your mind is better than an alternative candidate, then you may wish to vote strategically. Perhaps you feel ambivalent about one or two options, but there’s one candidate or party you absolutely do not want to win. Vote accordingly. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

Our democracy isn’t perfect, and an imperfect democracy leads to parties, policies and processes that are equally imperfect. But there is no hope of change unless we involve ourselves in this democratic process. For most of us, voting is the principle way in which we involve ourselves.

For the first time in over 200 years, Canada’s sovereignty has been seriously threatened, and, if for no other reason, this is a very good reason to vote. Trump may not stop advocating for our annexation nor stop the trade war, but if voter participation jumps up by a significant margin this year, it will at the very least provide us with a clear and unambiguous message that we believe in ourselves and support this evolving effort at democracy called Canada. ■

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Elections Canada (@electionscan_e)

For more on voting in Canada’s federal election today, please visit Elections Canada.

---

For our latest in news, please visit the News section.