Sunday, October 4, 2015

Strategic Voting

Just how are you going to decide how to vote?

Will you vote the way you have always voted, because that is what you are most comfortable with?

Will you be voting strategically to increase the chances of defeating the government?

Or are you one of the undecided, who will only make up your mind in the privacy of the voting booth?

Whichever, I trust you will do so with pride in our democracy, and pride in the kind of country you are voting for.

One thing that I think is important to remember is that, unless you are in his riding, you do not vote for the prime minister.  You elect your representative, the MP who will respond to your needs, react for you in the hurly and burly of parliament, vote for you on important issues, and report back to you on what the government is doing and how your tax dollars are being spent. That MP should be the best of the candidates offered by the parties and he or she is not the best just by virtue of being from this party or that party.

There have been and are, many very good candidates who become great MPs, who work tirelessly for their constituents and for their parties. But not all parties are equal when it comes to independence.  MPs are required by the major parties to vote according to the dictates of their leadership.  We have seen over the last decade the Conservative party diminish the role of an MP by exerting complete control over them to the point that they are reduced to parroting talking points written by non-elected officials. No one should suffer this humiliation.  If you vote for me, and the Green Party, you will get an MP who respects the viewpoints of all MPs, an MP who works with his leader, not an MP who works for his leader.  That’s a big difference in how the business of parliament gets done.

Beyond the candidates there are also some very big policy differences among the major parties that you need to consider.  

The Conservatives have demonstrated they are willing to take away individual freedoms through Bill C-51.  They have shown a high level of disrespect toward the role of the Supreme Court in our democracy and they have narrowed our energy policy so much that the economy has been severely weakened by a drop in the price of one commodity – oil. They have refused to address climate change, one of the greatest challenges we face and by cancelling the long-form census they have hampered our ability to collect the data and information we need to plan for our future.  Putting this behaviour together with the state of the economy and the senate and other scandals, I hope if you are a Conservative you can see that for the good of the country it is time to change your vote.

If you have been a Liberal or NDP supporter my request is that you look carefully at the Green Party platform when you consider your vote.  Unlike the other party platforms you will not find support for bill C-51 (Liberal), or support of expansion of oil pipelines NDP and Liberal) but what you will find is a platform designed for the long-term health of our economy and our environment.  The Green Party is determined to repeal C-51; it is the only party opposed to un-democratic “investor state agreements”; it is the only party opposed to all expansion of tar sands production and of bitumen exports; it is the only party that will reintroduce respect for our public servants, scientists, judiciary and members of the foreign service; it is the only party that proposes national pharmacare and dental care programs; it is the only party offering an end to student debt; and it is the only party determined to introduce a complete renewal of our democratic processes.

So there is a big difference in our platform and a strategic vote may not actually be in the long term interest of the country.  Also if by voting strategically, you imagine you are going not to elect one of the candidates, then how are you going to ensure that happens?  Talk to another 5,000 voters and persuade them to follow your example?  Maybe they will decide to vote “strategically” and vote for one of the other candidates!  It just does not work.

Similarly the idea of vote splitting is a fallacy. The Green vote comes from across the spectrum: we will take as many votes from one of the candidates as we will from the others.  Our presence does not draw votes only from the “preferred” candidate: a concern about vote splitting does not exist.

Far far better to vote with your heart and mind.  Vote for the future of the Canada that you want.  Be proud of how you have voted, whether your candidate wins or not.  You are still making a statement and taking part in our democratic experiment.

And vote with a friend; take a friend with you when you vote, whether a regular voter or not; or better, take a first-time voter, young or old.  We need people to vote: Elections Canada is not allowed this year to promote the idea of voting.  We, the candidates, have to do this job.

In this election there may be a front runner in Pontiac.  Certainly, Mathieu, as the sitting member has a strong chance.  So too, do Ben and Will, with strong national and local campaigns.  But front-runners do not always win, sometimes the 100 to 1 long shot passes the tape first.  With your help I can be the long shot.


I care who you vote for on October 19th of course I do:  I want you to vote Green.  But if you don’t, please be proud of your vote, no matter who wins the riding.