On Monday, Canadians will head to the polls. This will be my first time participating in a federal election. It’s surprising that only half of the voting population actually vote. I think one of the reasons for this apathy is that political leaders don’t engage enough people in their campaigns. For example, they talked about possible benefits for families, the elderly, couples, new immigrants, education, health care, small businesses, the poor, minorities, and other groups of people that excludes me. I’m part of the group that is single, is healthy, is employed in the private sector, saving and investing for my future. So far nobody is addressing people like me. Is it because I shouldn’t have anything to complain about? lol.
With the current polling trends, at least one research group believes that the social democratic party, the NDP, might actually win and run the country. “While that’s certainly an interesting result,” says Douglas Porter, chief economist at BMO, one of the largest financial institutions in Canada, “it’s not exactly market-friendly. In other words, hang onto your hats!”
Our auto insurance company, ferry services, and even electricity is run by the government and subsidized by tax payers. As a capitalist and someone who believes in personal hard work and investing in the markets, I thought Vancouver is fairly left on the political spectrum already. But apparently the popular trend around here is signaling that people want even more government spending by more taxation on the rich and corporations. A social democratic government would benefit my mom and dad so it’s not all bad if the NPD wins.