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Green Party Supports Go Vote Campaign

Green Party supports Go Vote campaign

(Ottawa, Monday, 16 January 2006) - Following its Youth Voter Day initiative, the Green Party of Canada is encouraging young people to get involved in politics by supporting the Go Vote coalition and its campaign to rally the youth vote, said party leader Jim Harris today.

On January 16th, a dozen organizations from across the country will join forces for a 16-hour Day of Action aimed at getting youth out to the polls on Election Day. The Go Vote Campaign aims to assist young voters by connecting them to the political process. The national, non-partisan effort is a collective reaction to low voter turnouts in recent elections, especially among those aged 18 - 29.

"The higher the rate of participation the stronger our democracy becomes, which is why we are proud to show our support for this initiative," expressed Harris. "With over 1.5 million post-secondary students across the country, young Canadians have a unique opportunity to demonstrate just how much their vote counts."

Almost the entire decline in voting rates over the past 20 years (61 per cent in 2004, down from 64 per cent in 2000 and 70 per cent in 1993) is due to low rates of voter participation by youth (Democracy Project). Despite this, Green Party candidate Juliet Burgess (Calgary - Nose Hill) feels that young people are knowledgeable about politics and the issues that affect them.

History is made by those who show up," said Burgess, who at 18 is the youngest Green Party candidate in Canada. "There is still time to get out there and make politicians accountable to all Canadians, because a vote is more than just a piece of paper - it's a contract."

Ilona Dougherty is the National Director for Apathy is Boring (www.apathyisboring.com), a Montreal-based non-profit democracy project and member of the Go Vote coalition. Dougherty feels the Day of Action is critical because it shows that there are people from all over the country who think the youth vote is important and recognize that young people should have a voice.

"If we don't vote, politicians have no reason to pay attention to us. We need to break that cycle and start recognizing that issues we face every day in our communities are the same issues that the political leaders are dealing with. It's hard to realize this when there's so much rhetoric going around, but it's something we need to get past to see the impact that politics has on our lives," said Dougherty.

For more information on Go Vote and the national Day of Action, go to: www.govote.ca


For more information:
Derek Pinto, David Kay
Media Relations, Leader's Tour
media@greenparty.ca

Green Party

posted by Annamarie at 1:07 AM