Byelections usually have low voter turnouts.
It’s understandable. There’s usually less awareness, less “buzz,” and, of course, one seat isn’t going to change a government or, usually, change the balance of power in government.
So, it’s probably not surprising that Saturday’s school board byelection saw only four per cent of eligible voters turn out.
But it could have been worse.
There was considerable effort to get the vote out.
The mayor and other labour-endorsed politicians and the city’s NDP MLA and MP were part of a robo-call campaign that should have bumped up the turnout a bit. And the winning candidate’s sports community connections certainly would have increased participation.
Excuses varied from those who didn’t get out and vote.
Someone said they didn’t know there was a byelection. There’d been little to signify one. Really? That person must have been binge-watching Netflix to have missed the election signs, Twitter and Facebook banter, and, of course, ads and stories in the Record. Another said since he didn’t have kids in the system, so he didn’t feel that he had any investment in who made the decisions in the school district. One person pointed out to that individual that he indeed did have an investment – his tax dollars. But aside from the pecuniary interest, he also is part of a larger society that values education and relies on it.
Others may not have turned out because the new high school had just been announced the week before. What was a burning issue in the community moved quickly to a back burner.
Voter turnout is an interesting mix of emotion and science.
Most voters are older, own their own homes and/or feel they may be directly impacted by the government. More public sector workers turn out to vote than private sector workers. Perhaps they feel the impact of government policies much more directly, and, perhaps, they are also more familiar with political environments.
Now, all of this may be turned on its head when the economy turtles, or scandals occur, and everybody feels a lot more invested in how the government is running things. So, perhaps city and school district officials could take the low turnout as a vote of confidence?
In any case, just remember this little byelection cost around $60,000 to put on. That’s about $32 per vote. Is that a bargain price for democracy, or too rich?
It’s an interesting question.
