Meet 3 Londoners volunteering to help people cast ballots on election day
Polls are open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET on Thursday
If it's election season in London, it's a guarantee you'll find small armies of unpaid volunteers knocking on doors, making phone calls and getting the word out about voting day in Ontario.
Volunteers are an integral part of any election, either in support of a particular candidate or party, or to be more involved in the democratic process and helping boost voter turnout.
Such a boost may be needed in London. Only four to six per cent of eligible voters cast early ballots in its three urban ridings, rising to nearly nine per cent in Elgin—Middlesex—London.
Ken Cossoy
Among those pitching in is Ken Cossoy. The longtime Ontario PC Party member has been volunteering with a local campaign doing "basically anything that's needed to be done."
"I'm more or less the assistant office manager and chief bottle washer," he said with a chuckle.
Having joined the party in 1951, Cossoy said he's volunteered with numerous campaigns over the years and managed a handful. He's currently CFO of a London riding association.
As residents head to the ballot box, he and other volunteers will be driving voters to polling locations with their own vehicles, something he said he's done for decades.
"It's what we call 'GOTV' — get out the vote," he said, adding most requests come from seniors who can't drive. Anyone can request a lift, regardless of the party, he said.
"We do not ask them if they're a supporter … We do not ask them what party they're in favour of," he said. "Voting is sacred in this country. There are too many countries in the world that you can't do something like this."
Rides to the polls are also being offered by other campaigns and parties to make the voting process as accessible as possible.
Shelley O'Connor
Shelley O'Connor, who has been volunteering for a Liberal Party candidate, said their office has received phone calls from other party supporters seeking information about voting day.
"If they need a ride, I [say], 'Absolutely. We don't discriminate. We prefer that you're a Liberal, because you're calling the Liberals, but if you're not, that's fine. We will give you a ride.'" she said.
It doesn't bode well for the country when people don't go out and vote.- Shelley O'Connor
Of the more than 10,000 phone calls made by the campaign's volunteers, she said up to 3,000 were made by her alone.
A retiree, O'Connor's first time volunteering was in 2015 for former Liberal MP Kate Young in London West.
"It gives you an idea of what the process is and how government works. It gives you a better understanding of why people take on the challenge and why other people say, 'No,' she said.
"It's a privilege to have the ability to vote … It doesn't bode well for the country when people don't go out and vote."
There are concerns about a low turnout in this provincial election, as it was in 2022 when London's three urban ridings clocked an average turnout of roughly 42 per cent.
Alex Wild
A student political organization has been working to entice younger voters to cast a ballot, using social media outreach and by canvassing student neighbourhoods.
"In general, there's a lot of apathy. I don't think that's specific to students," said Alex Wild, co-chair of NDP Western.
"Overall, we're seeing a lot of disengagement, a lot of being disconnected from politics as a whole. But students are really at the centre of a lot of things we're struggling with."
At the federal level, young voters aged 18 to 24 had the lowest turnout in the 2019 and 2021 elections at 54 and 46 per cent, according to Elections Canada.
To get students involved, the group has arranged for candidates from several parties for a meet and greet on campus. They've also provided rides to students who want to canvas but don't drive.
If we vote or not, decisions still get made. But if we vote, decisions can be made with student input.- Alex Wild
"Politics has always been a passion of mine, but I know some people might not have the same knowledge," said Wild, a second-year student majoring in political science and gender studies.
"Something I always like to say is, 'If we vote or not, decisions still get made. But if we vote, decisions can be made with student input.'"
Polls open at 9 a.m. and close at 9 p.m. ET on Thursday.
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