How I decided who to vote for
Like most Canadians, I’m more interested in the circus of US elections than what’s happening in our homeland. Any previous political involvement has been watching the US debates, and voting for whoever my friends thought was best. For a few reasons I decided to care about this election.
I live in Vancouver, and have considered buying property. My friends all would like to buy property one day. Property is expensive here. The cost of housing is so out of touch with reality that I am not considering buying in the city I want to set down roots in. This goes for many of my dual-income, high earning friends that want to start a family.
Besides housing, I pay provincial income tax and own a business. Some provincial policy could slightly impact my company (namely tax rates and grants). I’d also like to ride in an Uber or Lyft sometime in the tech epicentre that is Vancouver.
Here’s what I did to learn who to vote for:
- Signed up for their email lists
- Watched the debate
- Read a summary of each platform
Here’s what I learned.
They all suck at email marketing
The longer I stayed on their lists, the more I disliked each party. The NDP wins for the absolute worst messaging. They sent on average 2 emails a day, all of which asked me for $5.
The winning subject line? “I can’t even”
Besides my $5, the NDP is asking me to knock on doors, attend rallies, and fill out surveys. But mostly they’re desperate for a crisp Wilfred Laurier.
Honorable mention goes to the BC Liberals for the worst idea this campaign:
The debate
Debates are the worst format to express ideas. Like the emails, the debates led me to dislike each candidate more (save for Andrew Weaver). It is a terrible format for spreading ideas. I liked how Weaver performed here.
Instead of a debate, I’d love to listen to each of them on something like the Joe Rogan podcast where they’re actually discussing ideas and not just rehearsed talking points.
Platforms
That was more a summary of how annoyed I was at each parties’ email marketing firm and debating skills than a political analysis. Let’s talk about the platforms.
I was intrigued by Weaver in the debate, and checked out the Green platform. It surprised me how thoughtful most of it was — their stance on technology was by far the most innovative.
I recommend reading the best summary of the platforms here.
Here’s what I care about.
Taxes
Personal taxes will increase under anyone but the Liberals. Small business tax will decrease under the NDP and Liberals. Given BC’s current situation I don’t think more taxes are the biggest deal. A solution to housing is worth much more marginally than an increase in taxes.
Eg. If housing gets 10% more affordable and we manage to slow down the insanity — that is worth more to me than a few thousand more in taxes.
Housing
The Greens win here. The Liberals plan to do next-to-nothing, and the NDP have a few decent ideas.
Transportation
Really, NDP? Just give us Uber.
Technology
I like the Greens here.
Who I’m voting for
The Green Party. I disagree with some of their economic policy and would be concerned about the risk of a full Green government. They’re not going to win, so that’s a non-issue. I do agree with a lot of what they stand for, and having a good Green representation in a minority government will move some of their radical good ideas forward.
That’s also why I don’t feel like it’s a “throwaway vote.” In general I believe in capitalism checked by a good conscience.
I can vote Green with a good conscience. Along with good ideas around tech and the environment, they have the best housing policy. This gets a bit complicated, as the NDP has a better housing policy than the Liberals and their chances of winning are higher. By that logic if I wanted the best chance of provincial policy impacting housing in the next 4 years it might be a good idea to vote NDP.
But, I just can’t even. Their messaging lost me, and I think they messed this thing up. I’d like to see the Greens gain some momentum, and this election could be the tipping point to them being a legitimate contender.
My prediction
A very slim Liberal minority win with a good Green showing.
Anyone who already owns a house will probably vote Liberal, and (judging by Facebook) millennials won’t show up to vote. If they do, they might vote Green over NDP. This is purely gut feel — I haven’t checked the polls.
Hopefully I didn’t even offend too many people who care more about these things than I do. I’m still open to changing my mind — please keep any comments civil. Go vote :)
