The 2018 Vancouver civic election is the most punishing election VanRamblings has ever covered, and we’ve been doing this for 55 years.
We’ve encountered candidates inconsolable and in tears, with another prominent candidate seemingly in the midst of a nervous breakdown. Grueling doesn’t tell half the story, there’s something more at play.
We live in a new millennium, when social media has come to play an outsized and increasingly ugly role in our political discourse.
Not to mention: too many candidates seeking office — 71 candidates for Vancouver City Council alone … puh-leeze, give us and the candidates a break, will ya? — too little time on the election trail, too little voter interest, and far too many all-candidates meetings packed into any given night.
The 2018 Vancouver civic election has emerged as the nightmare of all nightmare scenarios for an increasingly beleaguered and put-upon candidate core. Goodness gracious, Thanksgiving occurred at the most opportune time, providing candidates an opportunity to spend time with their families and loved ones — and, hopefully, enough time to recharge their batteries and reinstate their sanity as we head into the final 11 days of the election. Hallelujah and love a duck, it’ll all be over soon.
Today’s VanRamblings’ post-holiday post concerns reformation of our civic electoral system.
To that end, we’re going to reference and do a take-off on our friend Mike Klassen’s 2012 Huffington Post column, 10 Ideas To Re-Engage Vancouver’s Reluctant Municipal Voters …
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Move the election back to the third week of November. Most folks didn’t realize that there might be an election going on until near the end of September. And three weeks later there’s gonna be an election? Gimme, and give the candidates for office, a break!
No wonder candidates are falling apart — they’re having to squeeze too much activity into too little time. It’s not fair, for the candidates, for the campaign staffs, for the campaign volunteers, and for the voters. Saturday, November 17th would have been a much better date for the 2018 civic election. In 2022, let’s move the election back … to the third Saturday of the month, November 19th!
- Hire an election administrator to co-ordinate campaign forums. Six candidate meetings in a single night, night after night after night. We hate to repeat ourselves, but puh-leeze. Over a longer election period, with an election meeting administrator in place, those organizations proposing to hold all-candidate forums would have to register with the office of the Chief Electoral Officer. Those organizations holding unsanctioned meetings would be considered to be rogue organizations; candidates would be encouraged not to attend those forums.
We’re not saying that any organization who wishes to hold an all-candidates meeting would be restricted from doing so. On behalf of the candidates, VanRamblings is simply looking to impose a little order into an unwieldy — and for this election, we’d say morbid, chaotic and particularly challenging — all candidate forum night selection process;
- Hire a social media monitor (or social media moderator team). This year’s Vancouver civic election has proved to be one ugly election. Trolls dominate the discussion on Twitter — they’ve learned their lessons well from Donald Trump. And lest you think there’s a conspiracy of right wing malefactors attempting to influence this election, put that thought out of your head — the blame falls mostly on the left side of the political spectrum. VanRamblings will address this repugnant phenomena at some greater length in tomorrow’s column.
The social media monitor would scan Twitter for malefactors associated with candidates or parties, root out the malefactors, contact the individual or parties involved, and advise them that they’re in breach of the protocol concerning proper conduct as contained in existing electoral legislation. Any candidate, campaign staff person or volunteer would be given one warning; after that the individual or party would be fined.
That several of VanRamblings favourite persons in the universe, and favourite candidates in our current civic election, have been subject to loathsome social media posts turns my stomach, and makes me livid !!!
- Candidate entry fee. My friend, Vancouver Courier columnist Mike Klassen wrote in 2012 …
“In 2011, there were 40 candidates for 10 spots on city council, and the number has been even higher in previous elections. A council candidate is only required to get signatures of 25 nominators and pay a $100 deposit (which is refunded after the election). I suggest the city clerk should require 100 signatures and a $500 deposit. While this may seem fair to some, it might be perceived as prohibitive by others. Nonetheless, let’s consider it.”
We agree wholeheartedly with Michael’s suggested prescription for a saner candidate registration process. But we’d go even further: any candidate failing to secure at least 5% of the vote would not have their registration monies refunded. If a candidate for Mayor is not confident that s/he can secure 5% of the vote, cannot secure 100 signatures in support of her / his candidacy, and cannot secure $500 as a registration fee, that candidate cannot be considered to be a serious candidate, and we believe has forfeited her / his “right” to run in the civic election.
For City Council, VanRamblings would change the registration fee to $250, and 100 signatures, and do the same thing at School Board and Park Board, refunding monies only to those candidates who had secured 5% of the vote or better. 21 candidates for Mayor. 71 candidates for City Council — that’s a recipe for insanity and candidate breakdown.
- Dump the random ballot. In June, COPE candidate for City Council Anne Roberts came out against the randomized ballot. Had we only listened. Nope, instead we were all full of ourselves, and thought, “Gee willikers, that’s something new and shiny bright.” Uh, huh. And then when Vancouver City Manager Sadhu Johnston put the kibosh on numbered entries on the ballot, he consigned voters to a fresh new hell in the voting booth. Thanks Sadhu — you’ve done us a real favour. Not!
- Adopt a neighbourhood representation system for the next election. Sometimes called a ward system, electing representatives to City Council who represent the interests of citizens resident in Vancouver’s 23 neighbourhoods? Gosh, what do we call that?.
Okay, I know: S-A-N-E.
Voter turnout in our current civic election is projected to be low, the lowest in a generation, at under 30%. Studies have shown that over time lower voter turnout in certain neighbourhoods is a byproduct of a stacked system where voters see their favoured candidates lose election after election. West side voters get out to vote anyway. East side voters tend to stay home, leading to social and political inequity, anomie and isolation, and a disenfranchised working class and immigrant electorate.
The solution? Adopt a neighbourhood representation system for the next election: one Councillor for each of the following neighbourhoods: Kitsilano / West Point Grey; Dunbar / Southlands; Kerrisdale / Oakridge; Sunset / Marpole; Grandview Woodland / Hastings Sunrise; Arbutus Ridge / Shaughnessy; Fairview / Downtown / West End; Victoria / Fraserview / Killarney; Kensington / Cedar Cottage / Renfrew Collingwood; Riley Park / South Cambie; Mount Pleasant / Strathcona.
Rather than stay isolated in their offices on the third floor of City Hall, virtually inaccessible through the maze of offices and forboding front reception that all but screams, “You’re not welcome here. What do you want, anyway? Security, c
all security!” causing a firightened citizen to feel as if s/he is entering a forbidding inner sanctum where their presence is neither wanted nor desired.Instead, elect Councillors by neighbourhood.
Councillors would set up neighbourhood offices, as our MLAs and MPs do, where citizens are greeted warmly and in a welcoming manner. Councillors elected by neighbourhood would be responsible to the neigbourhood electorate, while doing the wheeling and dealing necessary in Council chambers to achieve amenities, programmes, housing and recreation centres for their electorate, while trading votes to support an initiative put forth by a Councillor in another neighbourhood.
Lots would get done, it’d get done in a proper — and probably more fiscally responsible — manner, while providing the citizens in the neighbourhoods a sense of buy-in to the political process, and consequent gains for the citizens in the neighbourhoods Councillors represent. And you know what: Councillors wouldn’t even need a referendum to make it happen — all they’d have to do is make application to the province for a change in the Vancouver Charter.
The advance polls open tomorrow, 8am to 8pm. Election day, Saturday, October 20th is a mere 11 days away.
Advance polls run through October 17th — if you decide to cast your ballot early you choose one Mayoral candidate out of 21, and for City Council you’re to elect 10 Councillors, at Park Board there are 7 Commissioners to elect, and at School Board, 9 trustees. We’d ask that you please, please please keep yourself informed, and being partisan for just one moment, we’d ask that you please vote for the progressive candidates running for office in this year’s critical-to-our-future Vancouver municipal election.
Advance voting locations, October 10th – 17th, 8am til 8pm …
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Vancouver City Hall, 453 W 12th Avenue
- Roundhouse Arts & Rec Centre, 181 Roundhouse Mews
- Britannia Community Services Centre, 1661 Napier Street
- Hastings Community Centre, 3096 East Hastings Street
- Renfrew Park Community Centre, 2929 East 22nd Avenue
- Killarney Community Centre, 6260 Killarney Street
- Trout Lake Community Centre, 3360 Victoria Drive
- Sunset Community Centre, 6810 Main Street
- Marpole | Oakridge Community Centre, 990 West 59th Avenue
- Kerrisdale Community Centre, 5851 West Boulevard
- Kitsilano War Memorial Community Centre, 2690 Larch Street
- West End Community Centre, 870 Denman Street
We’ll see you back tomorrow. Full VanRamblings election coverage is available here.
