Nothing makes me happier than an election.
My last column was about how neat hockey is, and it's cool and all but politics - that's my favourite sport. People cheer for their favourite teams, reluctantly support players who have bad attitudes because they think they're the best for the game, everyone wears lil outfits matching their team colours. It's a sport. It just happens to be a bit of a nerdier sport.
Like hockey in Canada, politics isn't really something you can escape. Even the most disinterested hockey fan at least knows the name Sidney Crosby or Roberto Luongo, just like even the most disinterested voter knows the name Mark Carney or Pierre Poilievre.
Something that excites me about this election is how the polls have narrowed in recent weeks since Trudeau resigned and Mark Carney became Prime Minister. Nobody wants to watch a one-sided hockey game where the score is 10-2, I don't want to watch an election where it's a complete and total landslide for anyone.
There's also good, fun chirping at the other teams and then there's unsportsmanlike behaviour. Don't be the drunk guy in the stands yelling slurs, the other fans don't like it, your team doesn't like it and it just makes everyone uncomfortable.
Where they differ is the way you can participate. In hockey you can support a team, wear a jersey, cheer really loudly for them and that's great, I'm sure the team really appreciates it. In politics you can actively advance a team. Maybe you're a big fan of a team, so you throw on a blue or red or orange or green jersey and go hit the doorsteps. Maybe you hate all of the teams and quietly go to cast your vote, possibly holding your nose while you do it.
Election day is April 28, Canadian teams will face off against each other. Whoever performs best, whoever has the confidence of Canadians, will stand up to the new rivals.
And where we differ from those rivals is down south, their political team is part of their identity. They are Democrats, they are Republicans. We don't have that so much. Here it's a bit more like hockey, Canadians root for Liberals or support the Conservatives. Don't get me wrong, some of my best friends are die-hard supporters of political parties and those people are extremely important for the health of our democracy but the vast majority of Canadians are not like that.
Most Canadians have a party or two they like most, maybe they're big fans of one party but vote for another because they really don't like a third. Maybe they don't really like any of them. Maybe they're like my grade 10 social studies teacher who first got me interested in politics and they vote for a different party almost every election, going from Harper to Layton to Trudeau to May.
And it's okay to shuffle your support around. If you didn't like the management of the Canucks so you decided you'd be cheering for the Oilers, that's great. If Canucks management changed and you decided you'd go back to cheering for them, that's fantastic. If you like the Jets the most and will cheer for them whether or not they have a shot at winning, that's awesome. Si vous habitez au Quebec et vous aimez les Canadiens, c'est bon aussi.
I actively watch hockey, for enjoyment every four years. I don't pay attention to the NHL, to the trades, to who wins the Stanley Cup. But I watch Team Canada on the world stage.
I'm sure there are going to be voters, or potential voters, who don't know we got a new Prime Minister, who don't know anything about their local candidates, who don't know which plays political leaders are trying to make. But if those voters want to root for Team Canada, they have to study up and they have to vote for who they feel will do best on the world stage because every vote matters.
If you are one of those die-hard party supporters, you might be disappointed come the end of the election. But when a Canadian team is playing in the Stanley Cup finals against an American team, you're rooting for Canada. Whether it's the Oilers, Canucks, Jets or Canadiens.
Elbows up.
(As a side note, I'm naming my column Austin Translation. Hopefully folks like it because you'll be hearing more from me from here on out.)
