The acts of government are transitory while relations between people are lasting.
Sumner Welles
We have just observed Remembrance Day and pretty much everyone will confirm that those who died in war fought for our democratic freedom. That freedom gained on the bodies of those who died should mean something to all of us. It means we retained the right to exercise our democratic process and vote for those we want to see in office, whether on a local, regional or national level.
It is a privilege to vote and so many people have fought long and hard to ensure we could. It is imperative that we make the effort to go to the polls on Saturday, Nov. 19 and cast our ballot.
We have the opportunity to select those we want to run our district. We can toss aside those who have overstayed their welcome or we can keep those who have done their jobs as members of council, or we can elect a whole new council if we so desire. This is where you get your say.
It wasn’t that long ago that women and First Nations people couldn’t vote. In many countries citizens would love to have as much power as we do with our ballots. We don’t have to deal with crooked elections and skullduggery. We have 14 candidates who should be willing to put the needs of all of the people of Sooke first. Civic elections are powerful because we can have direct influence on who is running and administering our town, if we vote. Each of the candidates represents a group of people who believe in them but they alone are ultimately responsible to the whole community, not just their supporters. It takes a lot of commitment to run for office, they are doing the job for us, so let’s ensure we get the best sitting behind the council table.
Vote for the council you want in charge for the next three years. But most importantly, just get out and vote.