Another Election??

I do not know how times I have voted it. It feels like a lot. I have voted in every election for the past 50 years with the exception, I think, of the provincial election in 1972 when I lived in Toronto. It does not really matter how many elections I have watched as every election is unique both in terms of who is running and what the issues are. It should be noted that I have a terrible track record in that only once or twice has the person I voted for, gotten elected. I am never discouraged by this record, not have I ever chosen who I have voted for out of frustration or desperation. However, as I get older I do have a sense that the consequences of my choice may have perhaps less impact upon my life if for no other reason than I may not live long enough to feel the full effect of whatever policies get created.

It would be fair to say that I am not particularly excited by the upcoming federal election. Four years ago there was, at least amongst some of the people I knew, an overwhelming sense that the country would not tolerate another four years of Harper's brand of conservatism. There was a feeling that not only was it time for a change but that a change would happen. While I did not vote for the Liberals, there was a hope that Trudeau's "sunny days" would have a beneficial impact on the emotional health of the country. Certainly in the first few months there was a sense of optimism as he took to the world stage and preached about a better, kinder, more responsible type of government. It was hard not to feel good when he ensured that his cabinet was balanced in terms of female/males ministers because it was time that it happen.

But in the last 36-40 months, much of that optimism has evaporated. As any party finds out, running the country is complicated. There is seldom one answer that will make everyone happy. That if the party wants to run the country for more than one election cycle, the Prime Minister needs to make decisions that are political in nature - decisions that they may not have made as private individuals, decisions that will make at least some of the people very unhappy. As dissatisfied as some Canadians are with the direction of the present government, I do not think that that dissatisfaction is strong enough to intentionally push Trudeau's Liberals out of power. If there was a very strong party waiting in the political wings to take over - perhaps but there is no one.

The Conservatives will retain their percentage of the voting public. People who have not been upset in the past by their right-wing agenda, their barely hidden near racist beliefs about some immigrants and their fundamental belief that we all have equal opportunity to succeed will not be upset with anything that gets said in the next few weeks.

The NDP are but a sad copy of their previous glory. There is no sense that the leadership of the party has any capacity to generate excitement in the general public or for that matter even within the core of their supporters. The country could use a party that had a clear vision of what Canada would look like if the government believed that we need to take care of each other, that we need to have more, not fewer programs, that support those who are struggling. The NDP could have been that party - they aren't now and perhaps never will be again.

The Green Party may be the most dynamic party of the bunch. Their leader is a brilliant, well educated multi-experienced leader. The party has had a number of successes at the provincial level and some pundits argue that they are on a roll, that they have the momentum. Those pundits might be right except that the Greens have little organization at the federal level and virtually no one other than their leader who has any practice of being a Member of Parliament. While their values are clear in terms of the environment - I am far less clear about how they would impose those values through policies. In my mind, the primary question is: if the Greens increase their voting percentage - who will they take those votes from. If the NDP lost voters it would not change the political landscape. If the Greens took too many votes from the Liberals - the Liberals could lose their majority.

The question then becomes: who would form the government?