5. Your vote won't count. With first past the post system, only those who vote for the winner will have had any say in who becomes Toronto's mayor.
4. Your vote is just a chess piece for the media to get their candidate into power. With the power of the press, with Toronto being home to four newspapers, with fewer volunteers to fund campaigns and pound the pavement, candidates other than the chosen one will be pressured to drop out and officially endorse the chosen one. It then becomes real easy to herd voters towards electing in the chosen one because, see, your choice is now gone.
3. The only reason to vote is to keep the "bad guy" out. You couldn't find a more depressing reason to exercise your civic duty.
2. Polls are located too far away. It seems like there are fewer and fewer polls, requiring longer trips, trips that those with disabilities, illnesses, or other limitations can't get to on their own.
1. Misogyny and bigotry. Our elites, our mainstream media, by their actions, believe only pale-faced men are qualified to lead us. We women may have the vote but we should never get uppity and think we qualify to be Mayor, Premier of Ontario, Prime Minister of Canada.
There's something to be said for looking at City Council, at the Provincial government, at the Federal government, and see people like you. It not only makes you feel represented but empowered to be involved (perhaps that's the whole point of keeping women and minorities out). Toronto is the most diverse city in Canada, most multicultural on the planet, and who represents us overwhelmingly: pale-skinned men of European extraction. The only female mayoralty candidate was drummed out by the media led by The Toronto Star and lack of financial support. She isn't the first woman with a kick at the leadership can to be so targetted, and she won't be the last. The only viable visible minority mayoralty candidate is only visible on Twitter, barely (um, any?) peep in mainstream media. Ethnics are OK as long as they don't vie for the big chair.
Top reason to vote: If every undecided, disheartened voter voted for Sarah Thomson, she'd win and send The Toronto Star into apoplexy.
4. Your vote is just a chess piece for the media to get their candidate into power. With the power of the press, with Toronto being home to four newspapers, with fewer volunteers to fund campaigns and pound the pavement, candidates other than the chosen one will be pressured to drop out and officially endorse the chosen one. It then becomes real easy to herd voters towards electing in the chosen one because, see, your choice is now gone.
3. The only reason to vote is to keep the "bad guy" out. You couldn't find a more depressing reason to exercise your civic duty.
2. Polls are located too far away. It seems like there are fewer and fewer polls, requiring longer trips, trips that those with disabilities, illnesses, or other limitations can't get to on their own.
1. Misogyny and bigotry. Our elites, our mainstream media, by their actions, believe only pale-faced men are qualified to lead us. We women may have the vote but we should never get uppity and think we qualify to be Mayor, Premier of Ontario, Prime Minister of Canada.
There's something to be said for looking at City Council, at the Provincial government, at the Federal government, and see people like you. It not only makes you feel represented but empowered to be involved (perhaps that's the whole point of keeping women and minorities out). Toronto is the most diverse city in Canada, most multicultural on the planet, and who represents us overwhelmingly: pale-skinned men of European extraction. The only female mayoralty candidate was drummed out by the media led by The Toronto Star and lack of financial support. She isn't the first woman with a kick at the leadership can to be so targetted, and she won't be the last. The only viable visible minority mayoralty candidate is only visible on Twitter, barely (um, any?) peep in mainstream media. Ethnics are OK as long as they don't vie for the big chair.
Top reason to vote: If every undecided, disheartened voter voted for Sarah Thomson, she'd win and send The Toronto Star into apoplexy.
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