Amardeep Bains is a third-year political science student who is passionate about human rights, politics and rom-coms.
On a rainy Wednesday morning, I got a notification on my phone from an unknown number. I quickly ran through the list of people who I may be expecting a text from; no one. I opened the text and gasped, why was a politician texting me? More specifically, the MLA of my riding asking me, “Could they count on my support?”
Suddenly, it dawned on me that this person, who I knew nothing about was asking me for my support. They needed me and my support. Yet, I knew nothing about this person and what they believed or did. I began thinking if I was in a relationship with a person I knew nothing about.
The following day, I received a knock on my door in the middle of the day. This was unusual, as I live at the top of a cul-de-sac, in East Vancouver, which has hardly any traffic. If someone came all the way up my street, it was for a reason. I quickly ran through the list of people I was expecting to come over; no one. I opened the door and a man I had never seen in my life was standing in front of me. Then the man handed me a pamphlet and began talking.
I look down at the pamphlet and the man asked if he “Could count on my support in the upcoming election?” He stared as I looked at him in dismay. How could I promise him my support, when I knew I had other options that I had yet to consider? I said “I’ll think about it” and ran back into my house. I held the pamphlet while I thought about the text I had received the day before. Who was I supposed to pick?
Later, I went outside for a walk, and everywhere I looked were big signs with the candidates' names glaring at me to make a choice. I was conflicted. Was I not only in a relationship I knew nothing about, but someone else was hoping to be in that same relationship with me?
The answer is yes, despite my commitment issues I am in a relationship with a person I happen to know nothing about. And yes, multiple people want me to break up and form a relationship with them. The truth is, every single person in BC is in a relationship whether they may or not know about.
That relationship happens to be with their MLA. Like every relationship, it’s time to have that talk about where that relationship is going. There are two options, to keep the current relationship going or to decide to break up and look for someone else who may suit you better. Except in this case rather than a partner it’s with a political candidate. With the BC provincial election next month, if you are a citizen, a resident of BC for at least six months and over the age of 18, it’s time to decide who you want to be in this relationship with.
You have a multitude of options to pick from. The candidate will represent you, your beliefs, desires and needs for the future of BC. In a way, it's almost like choosing who to vote for, parallels with being a protagonist in a romantic comedy and deciding who to be in a relationship with.
Every classic rom-com has drama, fear, love and laughter which shockingly enough is similar to common emotions in politics. This rom-com begins with the protagonist already in a relationship. In your day-to-day life, you may often not think about your relationship. However your partner may take you for granted, but now you have the option to be with someone who may understand you better and provide a better life for you.
Now, like a true rom-com protagonist, it’s important to know all of your options and what they stand for, then make a choice of a lifetime (or for the next four years until the next election). The question emerges: how is one supposed to decide who to be in a relationship with, without knowing everything about them? The answer, is you're not supposed to right away! It’s similar to how when one first develops a crush on someone, they stalk all of their social media platforms.
In this case, we have to stalk all of their policies, beliefs and what they promise to do for your riding, as well as what their political party represents. Once you’ve found this information then you’ll be able to call over your friends and write a classic pros/cons list, or dwell on the subject alone, daydreaming about what life would be like with each candidate as your MLA.
How do we find this information? Incidents such as receiving texts from political candidates and the off-chance of a political candidate knocking on the door with pamphlets are a starting point, but we cannot wait around. Like our rom-com protagonists before us, we must be proactive.
Almost all political candidates have a website or some sort of social media presence. Look for websites in regard to their policies and beliefs. Important policies to look out for include key issues such as the candidate’s views on healthcare; how will they take care of, the economy; if they will be able to keep up to your lifestyle and housing; will they be able to provide you your dream home? This could be seen through their own beliefs, or policies of their political parties. Like when you start dating someone, you learn everything about them and stalk their family’s Instagram that they are super-close, too. It’s imperative to find media from the political parties, as well as unbiased sources such as news outlets with interviews of each political party following up on their policies and beliefs. The more you learn, the better.
A moment comes in every rom-com, where the protagonist feels overwhelmed and thinks that all of this hard work may not be worth it. From all of the reading, being busy in our own lives and the absurd amount of media we encounter daily it becomes draining to have to put energy into something else. However, you can either vote and help decide who you are going to be in this long-term relationship or go on a blind date that feels like it lasts for four years long. The choice is pretty obvious. Sometimes, we feel the need to go on that blind date to avoid the headache of deciding who to pick, especially, when in our current climate, different forms of media are everywhere and are often more than overwhelming and saddening.
We may brush off the provincial election as it seems like so much more is happening around us, but this has a direct impact on British Columbians. With the potential of a nearby federal election soon and the American presidential election just around the corner, it’s normal to feel fatigued. Think of those elections as your friend’s relationships, they are important but you have to make sure you are in a healthy relationship before worrying about anyone else.
Every classic rom-com has a feel-good ending, which in this situation happens when we go and vote. Now that might not sound like a traditional rom-com ending, however even if your candidate wins or loses you will be educated and know how the province will run. Regardless, the choice may be hard to make.
We’ve all seen a rom-com movie, where the lead made the wrong decision and ends up regretting it, in the case of voting a sequel will not happen for another four years. Thus it is important, to be like every good rom-com lead, go and vote and make the best decision that you possibly can. Hopefully, you live happily ever after (or for the next four years).
This is an opinion article. It reflects the contributor's views and does not reflect the views of The Ubyssey as a whole. Contribute to the conversation by visiting ubyssey.ca/pages/submit-an-opinion.
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