Waterloo Region Council Election Discussion

[jgsz]

One solution would be to have municipal parties or blocks.  The most obvious solution would be for candidates to come out of the closet and declare their political affiliation.  I know they all have them and 'party' workers will help with their campaign by knocking on doors, delivering flyers, etc.  The only ones who don't know this are the non-political voters, who often don't vote in municipal elections.  Yet they will vote in the Provincial and Federal election because they know which party and policies they generally support.   As it is, with all candidates saying more or less the same thing, it becomes a political crapshoot with dismal voter turnout.

Do they? Just because a candidate's volunteer team becomes available doesn't mean there's explicit party ties. There are many people whose party support changes from election to election, and is often different provincially from federally. We lack parties at the municipal level for a reason, and I don't know if it's worthwhile changing that.

Blocks, on the other hand, I might see some value in. If a group of candidates espouse affiliation with a set of principles, it may make it easier to cast a vote, yes.

In the last election a number of candidates were endorsed by some citizens group (can't remember the name).  I know in ward 10 (now my ward) Sarah Marsh was endorsed by them and James Howe wasn't.  Marsh won.  The Labour Council usually endorses candidates and they often do well.   For lack of anything more formal these endorsements help.  It gives voters an idea of where candidates are coming from.