Across the province, indeed the country, election commentators decry the apathy of the electorate, the non-involvement of young people and the lack of women putting their names forward for election. These are not problems in Qualicum Beach.
Whatever one may think of the present council, nobody can deny that they have generated keen interest in local politics over the past three years. Citizen groups have been formed and revitalized, issues have been vigorously debated and the coming election has been spoken about often and pointedly. The result of all this has been that an unprecedented number of candidates have offered their names to the electorate.
We have nine candidates vying for four seats, the majority of whom have not run before. They form a cross section of the community and, importantly, they represent youth — anyone under 60 is young in Qualicum Beach — and nearly half of them are female.
Voters such as myself who have, perhaps, a simplistic view of elections, may want to elect some people who are new or younger or female hoping to bring the energy of a fresh island breeze to the council chambers regardless of the issues.
We are fortunate to have such a breadth of choice in this election and in the number of candidates willing to devote the next four years to the governance of Qualicum Beach.
Colm HartyQualicum Beach
