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A Canadian Election Survival Guide Still Confused About How, When, Where, and Who to Vote for? We’ve Got You Covered. Caitlin Yardley Elias Grigoriadis @eligrigoriadis
The federal elections are just around the corner and so is all the stress that comes every four years. Not only do you have to choose the right candidate for you, but how do you even cast a ballot anyway? There are lots of simple steps needed to make sure you’ll get to exercise your democratic right. Why Am I voting? That is always one of the first questions to leave the mouth of those skeptical of the voting process. “One vote won’t change anything.” “What’s the point when all the candidates suck?” These and hundreds of other similar statements are not uncommon among young voters. For some Concordia students like Building Engineering major Louis Rivest, the process of finding which candidate to choose to run Canada for the next four years is the toughest. “I’d say the lead up to the vote is much harder than anything else. It’s finding out who you want to vote for that’s tough and then doing it isn’t so bad,” said Rivest. For all those intimidated by the time it takes to make an educated decision on who to vote for, there are several
resources available to understand which candidate you prefer from 15 political parties registered for the election cycle. The quickest among them are the online quizzes which ask for your opinion on a variety of topics and then match you to a candidate, like a sort of political dating app. The CBC has an extensive one that not only places you on a political chart, but shows you to what percentage you agree with the six national parties vying for your vote. Immigration, climate, health, and religious freedoms are all hot topics being debated this cycle. Take time to decide which is most important to you and see what the candidates have to say. Rivest also shares that it can be hard
to care about politics at times stating “ It’s hard to care when everything is going well, and it’s hard to want to get involved when you actually have to put effort, and put in your own research, and spend time that could be used either studying, or partying, or whatever you want. It takes time to be informed, and it takes time to make a smart, educated decision so it’s easier just not to make one.” The Registration Process Elections Canada has made strides to ensure that registering to vote ahead of time became significantly easier. The Voter Registration section at elections. ca outlines the different ways to make sure you get no nasty surprises when you show up to your polling location.
OC TOBER 2019
