Whatever the reason, Canadians definitely interested in Federal Election
By Brendan Quinn
As the date for the federal election draws ever closer, it’s becoming clear that Canadians are tremendously interested in change, with estimates from the advance polls over the long weekend showing an increase of 71% in voters from 2011.
According to Elections Canada, 3.6 million electors voted at the advance polls in this general election, which is a marked increase from the 2.1 million electors who voted in advance for the 2011 general election. The addition of an advance voting day on Sunday, offered for the first time this year, helped increase these numbers.
Nearly 15,000 people in the Kootenay-Columbia region participated and helped the riding attain one of the highest number of voters in the province.
Rob Switzer is the returning officer for Kootenay-Columbia, and he told The Nelson Daily that the voter turnout for this election has been bigger than ever.
“I did two elections in my old district and I’ve never seen these kinds of numbers before,” Switzer said.
“I’ve seen big numbers and it is directly impacted my office. We had to resupply ballots to several locations, and even had to do a second resupply to several locations,” he added.
“That should give you a picture of how much over these numbers are compared to what we expected.”
A big impact on these numbers seems to have come from a long overdue interest from young people and students, despite this generation’s reputation for being apathetic voters.
Marcel Dirk is a Professor of Political Science at the College of the Rockies in Cranbrook.
Dirk said that while numbers of young voters are still much lower than those of the baby boomer generation, there has definitely been an increase in the interest and awareness of politics for young Canadians.
“I would say that there was a time about five years ago when the enrolment numbers in political science classes reflected that larger belief about this generation not being interested in politics,” Dirk said.
“I will say that over the last two years that’s decidedly changed.”
Dirk suggested that students from business programs have realized the important relationship between business and politics and are expressing a larger interest in the voting process.
However, it’s not just students who feel learning about politics will assist them in the business world who are getting involved.
Young people in all fields are realizing that educating themselves on the ins and outs of our political system is something they have to do in order to fulfill the changes they want.
“Students feel they are uneducated as citizens and really don’t know a lot about how government works, or what politics is about, so there’s been a significant amount of students in that regard coming into political science class and wanting to become more conscious about politics and government,” he said.
“They’re definitely seeing a necessity to learn about politics and participate in the political process if they want their agenda items addressed,” he added.
Social media is also playing a large part in getting young people involved in the process.
“When you vote, be sure to snap some pics and share them on Instagram and Facebook,” said Jenelle Davies, Secretary-Treasurer of the Canadian Federation of Students, BC, in an email.
“Studies show en effective way to encourage your friends to vote is by leading the way.”
“Students and young people are a powerful part of the voter surge, I voted on Sunday with two friends and it felt great,” she said.
Elections Canada stressed the importance of checking your registration card or calling their office to see the exact location for individual voters. For security reasons, it’s very important for residents to only vote at their assigned polling site.
The election will take place on Monday, October 19th from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Nelson and area residents can cast their votes at the following locations.
AREA E:
Blewett School
2665 Blewett Road, Nelson, BC
Redfish Elementary School
265 Bryan Road, Nelson, BC
CITY OF NELSON:
Rosemont Elementary School
1605 Crease Street, Nelson, BC
Hume School
310 Nelson Avenue, Nelson, BC
Central Elementary School
811 Stanley Street, Nelson, BC
AREA F:
School District No. 8 Board Office
570 Johnstone Road, Nelson, BC
Taghum Community Hall
5915 Taghum Hall Road, Nelson, BC
