Strategic voting touted as key to defeating Stephen Harper’s Conservatives this fall

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      With Liberals slipping behind and New Democrats advancing, a strategic environmental voting network is recalibrating its message.

      Back in June 2014, Jon Cooksey of GreenLibs said that his group picked Liberal leader Justin Trudeau over the NDP’s Tom Mulcair as its champion to get rid of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives.

      “Mulcair is by no means terrible on all fronts,” Cooksey told the Straight in a phone interview at the time. “He’s a good politician. We just don’t think he can beat Harper because, ultimately, Trudeau has the brand name.”

      A little over a year later, Mulcair is polling even-Steven with Harper, and Trudeau is fading to third.

      In a new interview, Cooksey, a filmmaker, acknowledged the possibility that Mulcair may be headed for the prime minister’s office, instead of Trudeau.

      “With the rise of the NDP, obviously it changes that calculation,” Cooksey told the Straight by phone Tuesday (July 28). “And so for us, you know, we’ve shifted our priority back to where the real priority is, which is defeating Harper.”

      For now, as far as the group formerly known as the B.C. Green Liberal Caucus is concerned, voting for either Liberals or New Democrats is fine as long as it gets the job done.

      According to Cooksey, the new message is: “Wait until just before the election, see which non-Harper candidate is in the lead and vote for that person. If it’s NDP, great. If it’s Liberal, great. If it’s Green, great.”

      According to Cooksey, the fall election may produce either an NDP or Liberal minority government, or a coalition between the two.

      “Either way, you have a more responsive government, and that’s what we’re looking for,” Cooksey said.

      In the 2011 election, the Conservatives captured less than 40 percent of the vote, which was enough for them to form a majority government.

      According to Peter Prontzos, an instructor at Langara’s department of history, Latin and political science, the evaporating prospects of a Liberal comeback may prompt the anti-Harper vote that previously gravitated to Trudeau to look at other options.

      “It may come down to strategic voting: ‘In my riding, which party has the best chance to beat the Tories?’,” Prontzos told the Straight in a phone interview.

      Comments

      10 Comments

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      Jul 29, 2015 at 1:05pm

      Makes sense, why vote based on all those ideas that you hold dear, why vote based on who will do the best thing for Canadians. Just vote based on hatred. What could possibly go wrong???

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      Strategic Votes and Critical Thinking

      Jul 29, 2015 at 2:20pm

      Excellent article.

      Voting based on feelings is stupid. Voting on single issues is ignorant.

      Under our Westminster Parliamentary System which ever party forms a majority in effect has a Dictatorship and an pass an stupid law, subvert Democracy (adding seats favourable to them etc).

      This is the case with the anti-Canadian values current Dictatorship.

      Strategic Voting is not hate only an ignorant person would say that.

      Strategic voting is studying more than one issue, critically thinking beyond ones nose and voting in the best interest of our great Country and Democracy.

      On the other hand if you...;

      - hate Democracy and love Robo Calls love Senators that get $90,000 cheques,

      - Don't believe in Freedom, C-51

      - think that Constitutional Rights are unnecessary and cumbersome to a Dictatorship,

      - giving Communist China sovereignty over any Canadian Resource (FIPA),

      - believe in Corporate Welfare, Corporate bailouts in the tens of billions and record deficits,

      - believe in Planet and Economic destroying Tar Sands with little added value (Refining) and no real Royalties unlike Norway's model of a Trillion Dollar surplus,

      than by all means vote for the Cons you have the limited freedom to do so, so far.

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      Buddislander

      Jul 29, 2015 at 2:37pm

      Time for Trudeau to hook up with Mulcair and get rid of the cons forever.

      canadian left in disarray

      Jul 29, 2015 at 6:23pm

      You can see left-wing desperation a mile away. The cons will stay, and the country will continue to chug along reasonably well for another several years.

      The Moral of the Story

      Jul 29, 2015 at 9:18pm

      Having read the article, the main impression I'm left with is that Jon Cooksey is not someone to seek out for political analyses. Beyond that, good luck to all NDP candidates.

      0 0Rating: 0

      Wait

      Jul 29, 2015 at 11:30pm

      People vote for Steven Harper because he cares about Canadians and Canadian jobs. NDP and Liberal hate the energy indistry and hate Canadian business. The Leberals and NDP are dumb communists who hate Canada.

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      Want Harper Back? Then Vote Strategically.

      Jul 30, 2015 at 12:45am

      All this second-guessing about who stands what chance of ousting the NeoCons in which riding is EXACTLY what is going to put the Harper government back in power. If you want cronyism and fiscal mismanagement to end, VOTE NDP. Not "maybe NDP maybe Liberal maybe Green". Just vote for a new government that will work for the people.

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      Patrick Robinson

      Jul 30, 2015 at 8:19am

      Our biggest concern should be "election fraud". We have seen it over and over again. We need the United Nations to monitor this upcoming election..peacefully. Then if everyone votes and we become a Democracy again.

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      Amanda

      Jul 30, 2015 at 8:51am

      Why vote based on hatred? Because it's best for Canada. Nobody can argue why the Harper government is better, not one person, not even Harper himself. With a dollar it's lowest in decades, a recession, and the fact that during the last 52 years in power between all parties, the NDP has the best record for balanced budgets and average balance to deficit %

      There is really nothing worth arguing for on the Harper front. "He's just not ready" isn't going to cut it. A "He's just not ready but I am and here is why" might work, but unfortunately Harper is incapable of the job.

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      StuartM

      Jul 30, 2015 at 2:41pm

      There's nothing fancy about the way you should vote. Forget this strategic-voting nonsense. Vote for the New Democrats and the most progressive people from the Greens and Liberals can be appointed to different files. We need a strong democratic party in power; a party not owned and operated by religious philosophy or corporate rule. ONLY the New Democrats offer a truly social agenda - putting people before profit.