Every election since I arrived — federal, provincial, municipal — I worked through, paid taxes through, and had no say in. That is how it works, and I’m not complaining. But it does something to you: you learn to care about a place you can’t vote in.
This week, in the Whistler Public Library, I walked up to the table, said my name, and got a ballot. First time in Canada. Then I looked down the list of candidates for Council — and there it was. Otto, Ivan.
Did I vote for myself? A candidate never tells.
Why early
Not because I was in a hurry. Because a third of Whistler votes before election day — people on weekend shifts, people on the road, people who just like to get it done. The advance poll is quiet, it takes five minutes, and nobody asks you to explain yourself. I wanted to see what it looks like from the voter’s side of the table before I ask anyone else to go.
Why it matters more than it looks
Close to 3,000 adults live and work in this valley and can’t vote on October 17 — because of citizenship, or because they are not old enough yet. I was one of them for six years. They are making your coffee, running the lifts, cleaning the rooms. If you know one of them, ask them what they would want from Council — and carry that with you into the booth. Then go.
Two ways left
- Saturday, October 17 — Myrtle Philip Community School, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- By mail — apply at Municipal Hall by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, October 13; your ballot must be back by 8 p.m. on October 17.
Grateful, grateful, grateful. See you at the polls.