Opinion: The time is now, use your vote wisely
by Ramisha Farooq, blogger at RU Student Life
Look down any street, ally or town, you’ll know that it’s election season. Hordes of signs amass on major intersections, hang off bridges and line every road in Ontario. Municipal election time is here.
But, look on Ryerson’s campus and you won’t see an election poster in sight. Cue the political statements about youth voter apathy, community disengagement and the fact that “they just don’t care.” Then comes the debate about why young people aren’t involved in their own country.
Could it be because issues of youth, like tuition, jobs and the environment, are not addressed? Or is it because they just don’t know what is going on?
It’s neither… well, not really.
The fact of the matter is that youth are extremely involved in politics. Just not in the way you may think. We have all – baby boomers and the baby boomer echoes especially – grown up being told that voting is the only way a citizen can make their voice be heard in a land where our right to vote is instrumental to our democracy and citizenship (which, it is). It is our voice.
But, I think we as a society overlook some key global improvements that have popped up in the past 20 years. Things like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Vine, GIFs, I could go on, have dramatically changed our world and the way in which we communicate and speak our minds. Once you filter out the people talking about their dogs, the foodie photo bloggers and twitter spam, you find a global conversation. You find a universe where people – the majority of social media users being youth at a staggering 89 per cent – are not afraid to speak their minds. They’ve created a culture online of young people that are engaged and talking about global issues.
Simon Fraser University found in a 2013 study that of youth aged 18–29, up to 47 per cent participate by boycotting or boycotting products, 42 per cent post or promote political material online and up to 41 per cent sign petitions on or offline.
David E. Smith, a distinguished visiting professor at Ryerson University, says “it is a mistake to look at [only] the turnout in the election because youth now have multiple ways to voice their opinion.”
But, at this point in time, your vote counts. Even though our voices are strong online, it doesn’t count as tangibly as your ballot does, just yet. In fact, voting counts for more now than it ever has before. We are at a crucial moment in our city’s history. There are an increasing number of issues that plague us and who guides us through them is a significant decision. If there ever was a time to vote, it is now.
Voting is a civic duty. We really can’t expect change without it. The fact that only 60 per cent of eligible Canadian voters came out in the last federal election means there is a problem. Just over 30 per cent voted for the conservative government currently in power. What does this mean? It means that Toronto, Ontario and Canada have potential; we just haven’t reached it yet. Youth are a big part of that.
The fact is that Toronto cannot cope with another circus in office. So, your vote counts more than ever before. You can choose to ignore it, or you can choose to be a part of bringing real change in this city. Hoping for a better city may be premature and wishful thinking, but we have to have the belief that good will come and that you will elect someone that will enact change. Politicians may not be known for fulfilling all the promises on their platform, but sometimes they do come through on their word and it’s those times that you know your vote made a difference.
It was recently found that 161,147 people voted early in advance polls in this municipal election, versus 77,391 ballots cast in advance in the 2010 election. No one knows yet what this means, but the fact is that people have realized, ever so slightly, that this time around voting matters. Again, I may be stating this prematurely, but nonetheless it says something.
Voting is one small action. It is one small action and the difference it makes is exponential. The results on Oct. 27 will not just set the course for the next four years, but for the future of this city. It will determine the turns we take and the roads we cross on our path to full prosperity. If you truly believe in the agenda of a candidate, go out there and make your opinion known. It doesn’t matter who you vote for. It matters more that you make your opinion known. Our system may be problematic but it’s not broken just yet.
And remember, if you don’t vote, don’t complain. You’ll have to live with this decision for the next four years. So, this time around take a stand. This time around you can choose to be a part of something or this time around you can do what you did last time and let the opportunity pass you by. It’s your choice, it’s your voice. Use it wisely.
For more information on Voting in Toronto, visit toronto.ca/elections.
