2013 Calgary Municipal Election Thread

[CaptainYooh]

Does not voting for a trustee at all spoil the ballot?

[Table 5]

I voted to keep Bunk in office.

I forgot we were voting for a trustee, so had absolutely no idea who was what. I just didn't even bother taking a ballot for that.

[King Hippo]

I'm going to vote for whomever put the most money into ads and signs.

If they're willing to put the most money into their campaigns to influence my vote, they deserve it

[worth]

Trustee should be on a separate ballot, but if you are not voting for trustee you should tell them you abstain from voting for trustee, rather than not writing anything down and submitting the vote. That is a spoiled ballot I do believe.

[Table 5]

King Hippo had a write-in vote for Jamie Oliver.

[KelVarnsen]

I couldn't find Hard Poo Man on my ballot, and I was so confused on who to vote for in ward 6 after that I drew a big smiley face on my ballot.

[The Goon]

I'm happy that Richard Pootmans didn't decide to go by "Dick".

[SebC]

Originally Posted by kevman

Well maybe if all of the 'not totally happy with Farrell but more concerned with not getting Taylor' people voted for Alexander or Nodwell the candidate you want to win might actually win?

Nope. There are enough of those people that Farrell could win, not enough for Alexander to win and not nearly enough for Nodwell to win. Strategic voting is the only way a candidiate other than Taylor can win.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by CaptainYooh

Does not voting for a trustee at all spoil the ballot?

Yes, it is a separate ballot and they ask you if you are voting for all three (Mayor, Councillor and Trustee). You can refuse any of the ballots if you like.

[Regular_John]

Originally Posted by Slava

... She has almost nothing to say on transit, or nothing of substance and basically adds nothing to what is probably the most important conversation for her constituents. ...

*Ahem* May I direct your attention to her transit initiative from earlier this year? She clearly has her finger on the pulse of transit issues effecting the citizens of her ward.

http://www.calgarysun.com/2013/02/04...transit-passes

Seriously though, she's just the worse.

[You Need a Thneed]

Originally Posted by Slava

Yes, it is a separate ballot and they ask you if you are voting for all three (Mayor, Councillor and Trustee). You can refuse any of the ballots if you like.

For a while I was hoping that the Mayoral position and the Ward 5 position would both have been acclaimed, so that I could have gone in to vote, then refused the only ballot available.

[You Need a Thneed]

Sorry, all Bruce Jackman for Mayor voters. You can't vote for him.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by jaydorn

*Ahem* May I direct your attention to her transit initiative from earlier this year? She clearly has her finger on the pulse of transit issues effecting the citizens of her ward.

http://www.calgarysun.com/2013/02/04...transit-passes

Seriously though, she's just the worse.

Oh you got me! I forgot about that one. Seriously, how much of an issue could that be? (I don't know because when I asked her she didn't respond). If the biggest worry of our alderman is that a few people who are scraping by beneath the poverty line resell a transit pass for a few bucks, we've got things far too good!

[The Goon]

As of 3pm, voting is only at 11.25%. Barely over half of where it was at the same point in 2010.

Come on, people, get out and vote!

http://newsroom.calgary.ca/pr/calgar...rn-249048.aspx

[PsYcNeT]

Do those numbers include advance polling? Perhaps more people just got out early this year.

[Ozy_Flame]

I think is has to do with two things:

1. The incumbent mayor has an incredibly high approval rating.
2. There is no worthy challenger.


If we can get 30% this election, colour me surprised.

[REDVAN]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Slava you should run for her seat next time.

If Slava runs, I'll quit my job to work on the campaign.

I don't live in 13 anymore, but I did for 10 of the DCU years, and let's just say she's my least favourite person on council ever.

If I lived there myself, I'd run... even though I'd have a sliver's chance.

Slava- DO IT!

[Rerun]

Not voting. I don't live in Calgary and to be honest, I know nothing about the Okotoks candidates.

If I lived in High River, however, I'd probably vote.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Zarley

Also, for those of you criticizing the Manning Centre, please take a look at their plan to collect and equitable share of property taxes from new suburbs. It's a very smart, non-paritsan, proposal for reforming municipal finance:

Higher property taxes for new suburbs urged by think-tank

There are two "Manning Centres". The Manning Centre for Democracy (sic) consists of the Manning Foundation and the Manning School for Practical Politics. The Manning Foundation is a charity that pushes reasonable policies (such as the proposal you linked). The Manning School is completely partisan, as it is focussed on winning elections. Because the Manning School is largely funded by homebuilders, many of the candidates who have affiliated with it (the Manning School) will be developer-friendly even where policies such as the developer subsidy are directly opposed to the user-pay philosophy endorsed by the Manning Foundation.

If the Manning School candidates were following Manning Foundation ideology, they would be far less objectionable (and I say this as a liberal, Nenshi supporter). Instead they come out well-trained in the black art of campaigning, well connected, and well funded (as the people who fund the Manning School also give to their campaigns) but generally lacking in sound ideas for good governance.

As for Ward 11, Maxim is a guy who uses the fiscal conservative buzzwords yet contradicts this with his rail plans and sprawl-friendly views (that reflect his funding). Pincott is certainly flawed, but will be a reliable vote in controlling the cost of sprawl. It is ironic, but Pincott (like others on the "left") is more likely to endorse the policies that the Manning Foundation supports than Maxim and the "Manning Centre" candidates, because there really are two Manning Centres, with very different agendas.

[kootenayguy9]

Just voted.............two other people at polling station. Lots of bored election officials.