I Want to Vote on the Issue, Not the Party

It’s that time again. Candidates’ signs are decorating front lawns and wooden fences; flyers filled with promises not yet broken are cluttering mailboxes; and party leaders are on the TV explaining that their rivals hate puppies. Election season, nothing quite like it.

The leaders are particularly nasty to one another throughout this whole ordeal. It’s high school drama on a presidential budget. For the voters, it’s not so much about who we want to be in power as it is about who we dislike the least.

It’s pretty rare that a likeable character comes along in the race for leadership. And rarer yet that they have a legitimate shot at winning the nomination. In recent memory the only likeable candidates I’ve seen are Jack Layton and Elizabeth May. God bless them both, but they were never a threat to win. Whether you agreed with their party’s ideas was up to you and your ballot, but they ran their campaigns in good nature.

So, why would I rather vote on the issue instead of the party? Because there is no party that aligns with my views on each topic. And doing so would make me care more about how our government operates. Rather than pick a party and sit back with my feet up for the next 3-5 years, having a more complete say in what happens in parliament would force me to educate myself and take an interest in government affairs more than once an Olympic cycle.

“If you do not take an interest in the affairs of your government, then you are doomed to live under the rule of fools.”

– Plato

I have no political allegiance. Between federal and provincial elections, I’ve voted for names in the past that represent the Conservative, Liberal, NDP, and Green parties. I don’t agree with any one party’s platform wholeheartedly. There are issues where I align more with the Liberals than the Conservatives, and vice versa. And there are issues where I think the NDP or the Greens have the best plans, but I disagree with both of them in other areas.

Each party does something well. But no party does everything well.

I like the Conservative party’s fiscal responsibility, but I don’t want them to be in charge of our climate action plan. I think the Greens have a better plan to preserve our environment, but Annamie

 Paul hasn’t been able to unite her party, how could she unite the country?

I love that the NDP want to make post-secondary education free for all Canadians, but I’m not convinced that they won’t plunge our country further into debt. I respect the Liberal’s commitment to gender equality, but their commitment to removing Charter rights from unvaccinated individuals is a non-starter for me.

Speaking of that hot topic, my views align closest with the People’s Party of Canada, but I detest everything else about their platform. I’m stubborn when it comes to human rights. I think it’s black and white, there should be no grey area. Canada should not be a country where your rights and freedoms are conditional. Unfortunately, the only party that agrees with me on that is perhaps the least likeable of them all.

What I’m trying to say is that voting for any one party means I’m also voting against a lot of the things I believe in. I don’t want to choose one restaurant and eat from their menu for the next 3-5 years.

I want to vote on each issue that is important to me, not on a party that will decide how I feel until the next election. I want my submission to Ottawa to be more representative of my beliefs.

In the 2015 election, the Trudeau vs. Harper one, Justin Trudeau promised election reform should his party win. The NDP also campaigned on election reform that year and the Greens as well. These changes never came but it was evident that one was needed, and that people were in favour of it. Should we reform our electoral system? Probably. Is there a better system out there that we could use? Almost certainly. Should we be able to vote on each issue separately? I think so – but why don’t we put it to a vote and let the people decide.

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