Keep our local democracy alive by voting on Monday

The Spectator’s editorial board has decided not to endorse in the upcoming municipal election. Instead we advise you to visit thespec.com. Click on the full menu icon, top left on the home page. Then see the municipal election hyperlink at the top of the local news menu. There you will find a robust selection of election content that can help you cast an informed vote if that’s what you want.

None of that means we don’t have thoughts and observations about Monday’s vote and the campaign leading up to it. Here are some, in no particular order:

• It is unfortunate that this has become pretty much a one-issue election in Hamilton. But as this week’s Forum Research poll shows, LRT is far and a way the top-of-mind priority for most voters. In some ways that’s good. We will finally get a clear view of support and opposition. But in other ways, it’s not so good because many people may vote on that one issue without consideration for other factors. Here are some examples:

Rural and suburban voters are most likely to vote against LRT, with their councillors in many cases already having endorsed anti-LRT candidate Vito Sgro. But in casting their anti-LRT vote, they’re also voting for a candidate who advocates changing ward boundaries dramatically, which would alter the rural/suburban/urban mix. Sgro’s platform refers to shrinking the number of city wards to match provincial/federal riding boundaries. (He also supported Doug Ford’s Toronto council downsizing.) The idea has some merit, but it also means that the nature of some current wards would become watered down — urbanized, you could argue. Is that what suburban and rural residents really want?

Pro-LRT voters will vote for Fred Eisenberger. They may not realize that in the last election campaign, he promised to try online voting, an idea many younger voters would agree makes sense. Nothing came of that pledge, because city staff raised security worries, but online voting is happening in places as close as Burlington and Stratford. To be fair, Eisenberger says he still wants to try it, and if he is re-elected, he should.

The point here is this: By voting for a single issue, you can get more, and less, than you bargain for. Read the platforms and vote for the best mayor rather than just their LRT position.

• Burlington is having its own interesting election, including a mayoral race. Incumbent Rick Goldring faces challenges from Coun. Marianne Meed Ward and former councillor and MP Mike Wallace. Downtown intensification is a key issue.

Sadly, the campaign took a decidedly dirty turn when anonymous third-party advertisers launched a smear campaign directed at Meed Ward. It’s worth noting that the other main candidates have condemned the campaign. Those behind that nasty work deserve to be outed and deserve whatever they get afterward. More American-style politics we do not need.

• Regardless of the outcome of the mayoral races in the neighbouring cities, our city councils come Tuesday will have a different face. Several incumbents in both cities are not running again, which means new blood and new ideas are guaranteed. That’s good news.

• Of course, none of the above will matter if you don’t vote. Our local governments have a bigger impact on our day-to-day lives than their more senior cousins, and yet many citizens can’t be bothered to vote. Perhaps, with hot button issues in Hamilton and Burlington, that trend will be reversed Monday. We hope so, because if the voter apathy continues to grow, we can’t expect local governments to be responsive to their communities. The difference starts with you, when you leave your job or home and vote. Please.