There are many on the left, centre-left, etc. who think Stephen Harper must be stopped. Usually, that phrase is sent to me as “Stephen Harper MUST BE STOPPED!” to emphasize the urgency with which my correspondent is seized on this issue. The picture accompanying this post shows some individuals who were working hard in the 2008 election to make sure Harper was not elected. I snapped this pic while covering Harper during the 2008 election campaign during a stop in Victoriaville, Que., in the riding of Richmond-Arthabaska, where these folks who wanted Harper “stopped” failed to do so by helping to elect an MP, André Bellavance, who will never be in government because he is a member of the Bloc Québecois.
I take the yearning to up-end Harper seriously. Just as the yearning in much of Alberta to defeat the Chretien/Martin Liberals of the 1990s was a serious politicial force, the yearning in some parts to defeat Harper is not to be underestimated. And yet, as I just posted on the wall of a Facebook friend from the Lower Mainland in B.C., it's one thing to yell and scream “Stephen Harper must be stopped!” – or, in the case of the voter in the picture “Vote for Harper and you Vote for the War!” – and quite another thing to actually do it. Here's what I posted on that wall:
If unseating Harper is the motivation for you at the ballot box: Do you vote Liberal or NDP? It seems unlikely — though I am happy to be convinced otherwise — that an NDP MP from Surrey or Delta will be sitting on the government benches in the House of Commons. It seems more likely that a Liberal MP from Surrey or Delta will sit on a government bench. Indeed, the combined vote of Liberals and the NDP easily surpasses the vote totals of the Conservatives in the last three elections. So, to unseat Harper, who will progressives line up behind? Jack or Michael?
As a Professional Political Reporter (TM), I'm very interested to hear any thoughts on this issue, either in the comments below or directly to me at david.akin@sunmedia.ca.
Vote for a strong leadership, vote for Jack Layton!
Remarkable how people on opposite sides of the far ends of the spectrum often sound alike.
Like I posted on twitter, I live in Libby Davies' riding. My vote won't count.
I snapped this pic while covering Harper during the 2008 election campaign during a stop in Victoriaville, Que., in the riding of Richmond-Arthabaska, where these folks who wanted Harper “stopped” failed to do so by helping to elect an MP, André Bellavance, who will never be in government because he is a member of the Bloc Québecois.
Yes, I know the standard assumption is that any vote that isn't for one of the top two parties doesn't count. But can it really escape notice that in Richmond-Arthabaska the Cons finished second – and that if enough Bloc voters had taken your advice not to consider the party to be worth a vote, the Cons would have won a majority off of the Quebec seats where similar patterns played out?
Simply put, voters who aimed to limit the Cons' power by voting for the Bloc did so.
And there's no reason why a Bloc vote couldn't help to support an alternative government in the future – at least, as long as the Cons' fearmongering isn't given more credence than it deserves.