Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Adam Donnelly

MUNICIPAL ELECTION 2022

Excuses are few, Kamloops: get out and vote in the 2022 municipal election

Oct 6, 2022 | 4:42 PM

KAMLOOPS — It’s a fundamental right of every citizen which people have fought and died for. However, come October 15, it’s highly likely less than half of the eligible voters in Kamloops will turn up to cast a ballot.

“We tend to see a lot of that disconnect of thinking that ‘high politics’ is really what’s interesting,” TRU Associate Professor of Politics Robert Hanlon explains, “rather than the lower levels of municipal politics that do impact our lives — ironically — most importantly.”

In 2018, just 30 per cent of more than 67,000 eligible voters in the city cast a ballot. In 2014, it was slightly better — 34 per cent of those eligible voted, the highest number in the past four municipal elections. The current mayor of Kamloops thinks we should do better.

“I think people take it for granted that we’re in a participatory democracy,” Ken Christian says. “They choose to either go golfing or go voting.”

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2022 marks the first time in almost three full decades worth of elections Ken Christian’s name won’t be on a ballot. He hopes this year, with the number of candidates who’ve stepped up and put their names forward, we see higher turnout.

“With a very tight race for mayor, I think those campaigns will have identified their supporters and will be encouraging their supporters to come out,” Christian says. “I’m optimistic we’ll be in the high-30 [per cent of eligible votes cast]. That would be a good day for us.”

While this year’s ballot is less crowded than 2018’s, there are five mayoral candidates, 23 council hopefuls, and ten running for school board trustee. It’s not easy for average voters to know who will to advocate for their interests at city hall.

“People are living very busy lives, so a lot of this is about how we can get people on the streets during voting day,” Hanlon says. “That message is really about understanding how local politics impacts your day to day lives much more so than provincial or federal politics.”

Christian’s term will officially end when the new mayor and councillors get sworn in on November 1. He’d like to see the successors receive a strong mandate from the majority of eligible voters, which he says has never been easier.

“We’ve got advanced polling on Saturday (Oct. 8th) and next Wednesday (Oct. 12th), and then of course we have election day (Oct. 15th) 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and the polling places are their usual locations — plus we’ve added Juniper Ridge this year,” Christian says. “And there’s always the chance to mail in your vote — get a mail in ballot from city hall and our Chief Elections Officer. There are lots of ways to vote.”

With all those options to submit your ballot and do your democratic duty before 8:00 pm on October 15th, it really reduces the excuses available for those who don’t.