In the wake of the provincial election, it’s been reported that many eligible voters didn’t cast a ballot. These people complain that they didn’t bother to vote because they’re disillusioned by the candidates or politics in general.
I’ve heard the disaffected lament of this part of the electorate for years and I can’t stomach it anymore. People who renounce elections because politicians are “all the same” often cast themselves as truly enlightened. They see themselves as too hip or righteous to simply hold their noses and make a decision one way or the other at the ballot box.
In reality, people who don’t bother to vote are either too lazy, shiftless or misinformed to participate in elections. For starters, anyone who says that politicians and parties are “all the same” is an idiot. Try asking someone who works in the public sector if its “all the same.”
Elections have consequences and every vote counts. A political science professor once told a class I was in that we don’t have to be in love with the parties or candidates we vote for. As citizens, we are obligated to make a calculation, however imperfect, and pick a candidate even if we are merely picking the lesser of two evils. Frankly, that’s what many voters, including myself, actually end up doing on election day.
My advice to those who did not cast a ballot: grow up. Drop the phoney “too cool to vote” affect and get involved. If you want the government to be more responsive, you have to make politicians respect you. The only way to do that is by voting.
Failure to vote only ensures that the things you hate about politics continue to fester.
Mohammed Sahib, Surrey