ALL RIGHT, YOU GOT ME WITH THE RENT THING,
BUT | DON'T FEEL INFORMED ENOUGH TO VOTE

The good news is you have plenty of time to get informed before the municipal election and the
referendum!

The best place to start learning about local candidates is in your local newspaper. Now that
nominations are over, and the list of candidates has been finalized, you'd best believe you're going to start
hearing a lot about your local nominees. Local newspapers will also probably announce the times and dates
of upcoming debates, which | highly recommend attending. This is your chance to ask candidates direct
questions about their policies and let them know what your priorities as a voter are.

Candidates will likely start door-knocking over the next month leading up to the election. | know
it’s going to be tempting to turn off all the lights and pretend you aren’t home, but this is a unique
opportunity to talk to a potential community representative one-on-one. At the very least, don’t
immediately trash the flyer they’re no doubt going to leave in your mailbox or on your doorstep.

Facebook is also a good place to learn more about your local candidates. As people become more
social media literate, I'm finding that a lot of local government officials are starting to make good use
of Facebook pages and groups to organize and promote their platform. If you find a candidate you're
personally passionate about, let people know! Oftentimes people will just vote for names they recognize if
they're not super informed on the issues. Make sure to support your ideal candidate by making their name
recognizable to people within your social group.

As for the referendum, there are plenty of resources online detailing the differences between the
potential voting systems. Assess your own priorities as a voter and do a little research to see which system
lines up with them. Talk to your friends and family about it—hell, you can even ask one of your Douglas
profs if you’re confused. | find one of the best ways to make an informed decision is to not only read up on
the technical aspects of the choices provided, but to listen to the opinions of people | trust on the matter as
well.

FINE, MAYBE | DO WANT TO VOTE—
BUT REGISTERING TO VOTE SOUNDS COMPLICATED

It isn’t! | honestly updated my voter registration information before writing this article and it took me all
of five minutes, if that. You can do it online at elections.bc.ca/ovr and all you need to have on hand is a
personal identification number of some kind (driver's license, Social Insurance Number, Personal Health
Number, et cetera). Elections BC has, according to the website, already passed along your registration
information to local governments, so you'll want to check with your local government election office to
make sure you're registered to vote in the municipal election. That part I'Il admit is a bit of a pain, but
looking up your local government office is super easy—you can find the contact information for yours at
www.civicinfo.bc.ca either in the directory or under “municipalities”.

Change starts small and it starts at home. If we want a better future for our country, we have to
start treating every election and every vote like it matters—because it does! Poor voter turnout
has spelled disaster for the priorities of people in our age demographic. A democracy functions
best with an informed and engaged population. So, get informed, get registered, and get voting!