Voting for the right candidate seems simple enough. Yet, in an evergrowing economic-oriented world, political campaigns have galvanized techniques that can easily leave the everyday citizen mystified and bewildered.
Polls, segmentation and targeted messages will are delicately engineered so as to empathize with the average Jo. Indeed, in the Canadian context, parties seem to be increasingly market oriented. This begs the question how, then, should one vote for a candidate who accurately represents the citizen's interest.
Is your vote based on what your parents and friends have voted for? Do you vote for the best-looking and spoken candidate? Do you choose to follow one campaign or all of them? The following instruction set was created to help a voter with the process to follow when trying to decide on his or her favourite party. Remember that, "one who does not vote has no right to complain" (Louis L'amour).
A. Decide what you want from your government
- Think of the top 5 values in your life
- Write them down
- Think of which of these values relate to government
- Circle these values
B. Research the players in the game
- Become familiar with each candidates platform**Tip: This can be found on each of the parties' platforms
- Check out each candidates Twitter
- Dive into political news
- Be sceptical**Tip: Try to identify a slant, if something seems off, question it. Research it. Trust your gut.
C. Choose your favorite player
- See if your values that you wrote down are used in the candidate's advertisement
- If so look into the party's mission statement
- Attend political events
- Narrow down the candidates that best represent you
- Study these candidates intricately
- Pull out key words/ values that they are advertising
D. Give Your Favorite Player Your Support
- Make sure you are a registered voter well before election day
- Vote early
- Vote or quash your vote** Important: If you are discontent with the representatives do not forget to officially cancel your vote to let them know that you do not agree with the current options.
E. Follow-up with the player
This is the most important step which is not followed through by the many voters.
- Hold the candidate accountable to the promises they have made
- If disappointed with the governing party show it**Tip: Read, write, talk and walk what you feel. You are a citizen your voice matters. Government is listening and things DO change. Social media is extremely useful to express your concerns publically. It is also a great way to gather support in numbers and a great way to create social movement.
- Ask questions and demand for answers**Caution: do not be cynical be fierce
- Do not vote for them if you are still upset with the government
- Try to escape ideological boundaries
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