What can be done about Hamilton’s historically low voter turnout? Can anything be done?
This was the question we asked at the first ever TPR Discussion Event on November 19 at the George Hamilton Pub.
Watch the full replay as three Hamilton experts, Elizabeth McGuire, Marvin Ryder, and Alex Sevigny, discuss the issue and recommend some steps we can take as a community.
Elizabeth McGuire, brings her experience addressing poverty in Hamilton, one of the root causes of low voter turnout in our City. She is involved with the Campaign for Adequate Welfare and HOPE She organized a voter turnout project in the provincial election, including canvassing some CityHousing Hamilton buildings to increase turnout. She’ll bring us the perspective of how we can improve voter turnout by grassroots initiatives.
Marvin Ryder, Assistant Professor, Marketing in the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster, brings experience running Hamilton’s municipal government and ‘institutional memory’ of Hamilton’s political landscape. He was Chair of the Transition Board for the new City of Hamilton, charged with organizing Hamilton’s first amalgamation election in 2000. The Transition Board tried many methods of voter engagement, including organizing an official debate. Ryder can help us understand what government
Alex Sevigny, Associate Professor, Department of Communication Studies & Multimedia at McMaster, brings to the panel experience in provincial and federal campaigns, and his expert knowledge of communications. What can we do better in communicating to improve voter turnout?