The people who don’t vote are part of Sarnia too

Humans of Sarnia columnist Art Connolly looks at who showed up in 2022 — and who didn’t. Voters 18 to 34 cast just 11.5 per cent of the ballots. Sarnia’s next chapter, he writes, shouldn’t be left blank.

In Sarnia's 2022 municipal election, only about 40 per cent of eligible voters cast a ballot.That means roughly six out of every ten people who were eligible did not vote. Think about that for a moment. Imagine if six out of every ten people in a room simply decided not to have a say in what happened next.

And yet, that's essentially what happened when Sarnia chose the people who would make decisions affecting our community.

I'm not writing this to criticize anyone who didn't vote. There are plenty of reasons people don't. Some people don't know who the candidates are. Some don't understand how municipal government works. Some feel that politicians are all the same. Some are busy. Some have become cynical. And some simply believe that their one vote won't make a difference.

But there is one group whose absence concerns me particularly: young people.

In the last municipal election, voters between 18 and 34 made up only about 11.5 per cent of the votes cast.

That's a remarkable number when you consider how much of Sarnia's future belongs to that generation. If you're 20 today, the decisions being made by city council aren't just about the next four years. They're about the community you may live in when you're 30, 40, 50 and beyond. They're about housing, jobs, transportation, the environment, downtown development, recreation, arts and culture, taxes, Infrastructure.

The kind of opportunities that will—or won't—exist here when you're raising a family. Those decisions are being made whether you vote or not. And that's the part I hope young people understand. Not voting doesn't mean you're staying out of politics.

It means you're allowing other people to make the decision for you.

Your vote doesn't have to be perfect

Maybe you don't know which candidate is best. That's okay. Maybe you don't agree completely with any of them. That's okay, too. Democracy isn't about finding a candidate who agrees with you on every single issue. It's about learning enough to make the best decision you can:

Read.

Listen.

Ask questions.

Talk to people who disagree with you.

Look at what candidates have actually done—not just what they promise to do. Then make your choice.

And don't let anyone tell you that your vote doesn't matter.

One vote may seem insignificant. But elections aren't decided by one person. They're decided by thousands of individual decisions.

Yours is one of them. Sarnia belongs to all of us

One of the things I have discovered through my Humans of Sarnia column here in The Journal is just how many different people make up this community. I've met people who have lived here their entire lives. I've met people who arrived only recently. I've met business owners, students, retirees, artists, workers, volunteers, parents, newcomers and people who are simply trying to figure out what comes next.

They don't all see Sarnia the same way. And that's a good thing. A community shouldn't be made up of people who all think alike. It should be made up of people who care enough to participate. Voting is one of those opportunities.

It doesn't require a protest sign. It doesn't require a political argument. It doesn't require you to become a political junkie. It simply requires you to show up at the poll or vote online.

To the young people of Sarnia:

This is your city. You have a stake in what happens here. You have ideas that older generations may never have considered. You have experiences that should be part of the conversation. And you have something incredibly important: a future that hasn't been written yet. Don't let other people write all of it for you. Find out who is asking for your vote. Find out what they believe. Ask them questions. Challenge them.

And then, when election day comes, walk into that polling place—or cast your ballot through whatever voting options are available—and make your voice count. You don't have to vote the way your parents do. You don't have to vote the way your friends do. You don't have to vote the way I do. Just vote.

Because Sarnia's future shouldn't be decided by the people who happen to show up. It should be shaped by the people who live here. Including you.

Your voice is part of Sarnia's story.

Don't leave that page blank.