Don’t be lazy

The latest provincial election is looming next Wednesday (Oct. 10)—and with it a familiar refrain: “Why bother to cast a ballot? My vote doesn’t matter, anyway.”
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Your one vote could determine which candidate captures the Kenora-Rainy River riding. And that one riding, in turn, could determine which party wins the election—as well as whether it’s a majority or minority government.
And this time around, your one vote could decide whether Ontario keeps its current electoral system—or adopt the proposed Mixed Member Proportional one.
Granted, it isn’t too often that a candidate wins by one vote or that one riding spells the difference between a majority and minority government, but it can—and does—happen.
What’s really at the crux of the matter, though, is the underlying message relayed by this voter apathy. If everybody decided their vote didn’t matter, our entire democratic tradition would collapse. Do we yearn for the days when an autocratic king, despot, dictator, or warlord ran the show for us?
Our election process isn’t perfect, nor is our parliamentary form of government. But despite their flaws, it is the people who still wield the ultimate power every four years—not a particular individual or interest group or multinational corporation.
It is our duty to choose who we think will run our province in our best interest. That means being an informed voter and casting a ballot each election.
Voter apathy really means being too lazy to know the various platforms or bother caring who wins—and there’s just no excuse for that.