April 2, 2011
One of the things that I've found interesting during this campaign so far, is nobody is talking about issues facing Canadian cities. I did not know this until recently (and this will likely make me sound naive) but 80 per cent of the population lives in an urban area.
For the Liberals and NDP to ignore urban issues is intriguing, because this is largely where their seats come from. Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal largely vote Liberal with a smattering of NDP (and Bloc, for our Québec friends). The only cities that the Conservatives dominate are Calgary and Edmonton.
I think this is a prime issue that the Conservatives should latch on to, in an effort to build upon their seat count and achieve their goal of a majority government. Here in Toronto, where a conservative was handily elected Mayor, there are numerous issues that the federal Conservatives could attach themselves to, in order to gain support. Transit is always a top of mind issue, as are infrastructure dollars in general. With a leader in Rob Ford in Toronto, now more than ever is a chance for the Tories to work with a supportive-minded mayor and perhaps win seats in Scarborough, working towards the downtown core in future campaigns.
To be fair, until a few months ago, I lived in a suburban riding. I don't have a full grasp on the urban issues. From a casual observer, though, it's a vote-getter for a wide swath of the population. Someone just needs to latch on and tackle them.
I wholeheartedly agree. I really think that's something they (and probably the others) should focus on as well. Thanks for bringing this to mind, since I've never really thought of it either.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the conservatives should consider breaking the trend and making tv commercials about what they will do for you as opposed to what someone else won't do for you. It would at least be refreshing.
We had a Conservative mayor in Larry O'Brien, and that really didn't work out well for us.
ReplyDeleteI suspect that the reason they are not targeting urban voters per se is that they are looking for the ties that bind (focussing on families) instead of what divides (rural vs. urban).