LONG CAMPAIGNS GOOD FOR US
Any of three parties could win; it pays to know more about them
Woody Allen once joked that life is full of loneliness, misery, suffering and unhappiness, and it’s all over much too soon. In Canada, we seem to have the opposite view of election campaigns: they’re fundamental to our democracy, crucial tests for prospective prime ministers and essential forums for debate about policy, and they last way too long.
It’s fashionable to look down on the state of politics. The decline is usually described by employing the ultimate Canadian pejorative: Americanization. If it’s American, it’s presumed to be bad for Canada, even if a supposedly flawed political system produced a president who is remarkably popular north of the border.
The latest example of undesirable American-style politics is the fixed-election date. In place of a traditional five-week cycle, we now have an unofficial campaign that began a few weeks ago, or after the budget, or maybe last year, (and may become official Sunday if Prime Minister Stephen Harper calls the Oct. 19 election). Critics say that means more partisanship, more negative advertising, more attempts at vote-buying and months of full-time campaigning instead of governing.
Have we forgotten what life was like without fixed voting days? It’s not like the elections used to be snap quizzes, sprung on the parties without warning. Everyone knew roughly when they were going to happen, and there was plenty of partisanship and posturing for months leading up to them. Without a fixed date, the Parliamentary press gallery would have long ago become consumed with speculation on when the election would be called.
And more than just politicking, this never-ending campaign has actually produced a long list of ideas. The NDP has promised a massive new child care program. The Liberals say they will overhaul the voting system. The Conservatives have already enacted a sweeping redistribution of income to families with young children.
All the parties have the comfort of knowing the timetable and presenting their platforms strategically. Unlike in a short campaign, there is time for proposals to be considered by the public, reviewed by think-tanks and academics and debated by politicians, who have the luxury of offering counterproposals.
As for the notion that there’s unprecedented partisanship, that’s not a result of fixed elections; it’s simply the nature of our times. There’s been rhetoric since the day after the Conservatives won their majority. Without a set date, there would be the same number of attack ads and the government would still be using all the means at its disposal to get re-elected, including issuing cheques to families.
Professional athletes tend to play better in the last year of their contracts. It’s unlikely the Conservatives would have pledged $1 billion for Ottawa light rail without a vote around the corner.
Will Canadians get fed up and tune out? Only to the extent that they’ve tuned in to the campaign in the first place. Members of the public will participate as they see fit, as they always have done.
There’s just more opportunity for them to do so in a longer campaign. This isn’t new. Municipal elections have been on fixed timetables for years. And they start ramping up in January, when candidates in some cities are allowed to register, more than 10 months before the vote. No one would recommend giving the mayor discretion over when the next election will be held.
Instead of bemoaning every change with cynicism and a short memory, we should acknowledge that Canadians are being well served by the current lengthy election campaign. There are three parties with a real chance of forming a government. Each is presenting its ideas for the public to consider. The leaders will be travelling the country for weeks, meeting voters and defending their actions and platforms in several debates.
That’s not an awful, neverending, Americanized campaign; it’s good democracy.
Instead of bemoaning every change with cynicism and a short memory, we should acknowledge that Canadians are being well served by the current lengthy election campaign ... It’s good democracy.
Mark Sutcliffe