Your vote is your voice, and in this year’s Alberta election, it’s vital to ensure your voice is heard loud and clear. This is not the election to sit on your hands.
First and foremost, the election is too close to call.
An online poll from Abacus Data, which ran from May 19 to May 22 and surveyed 1,507 eligible voters, found the UCP to have 51 percent support among decided voters.
According to the survey, the NDP is trailing the UCP at 46 percent. But among likely voters, the survey found that one in ten of respondents were still undecided.
“There’s still a chance that the NDP could win the most seats but not win the popular vote given just how lopsided the UCP’s vote is outside of the two big cities,” Abacus Data CEO David Coletto told the Toronto Star.
Other pollsters have the race a tossup, and some have the NDP slightly ahead. 338Canada, which aggregates many polls, has the UCP winning the popular vote (because they dominate in rural areas), but the NDP getting more seats.
No matter how you cut it, it’s too close to call. That’s where you come in. Every vote will count, so don’t find yourself sitting on the sidelines complaining the day after if the vote doesn’t go your way.
The one thing everyone agrees on is that the election will be won or lost in Calgary. Abacus Data has slightly UCP ahead with 47 percent support from likely voters and 42 percent for the NDP. Other polls showed the NDP surging by eight percent last week.
However, 8 percent of likely voters in Calgary are still undecided. These voters could make or break the UCP’s lead.
“There’s no reason for people not to vote, because your vote will matter. Especially if you live in Calgary,” Peter Woolstencroft, Professor Emeritus from the Department of Political Science at the University of Waterloo, told CTV News.
Ultimately, pundits predict the vote will come down to who voters trust more on two issues: the economy and healthcare. The pandemic pulled the rug out from under us, revealing a healthcare system in shambles.
According to Abacus Data, the UCP has an advantage on the economy, but the NDP is preferred regarding healthcare and risk.
Specifically, survey respondents found the UCP to be 8 points more risky than the NDP and 8 points behind when asked who was most likely to fix healthcare.
“…in terms of just-in-time staffing, in terms of not keeping up infrastructure support, those sorts of things, really came out during the pandemic and are causing ongoing challenges,” Ricardo Acuña, executive director of Parkland Institute, told CBC News.
In 2019, 70 percent of Albertans voted in the provincial election, the highest turnout the province had seen in decades. If Abacus Data’s survey is any indication, we can expect similar numbers this year.
Of the more than 1,500 eligible voters Abacus surveyed, over seven in ten said they would be voting in the election. Don’t let your voice go unheard this election.
Let’s hold our government accountable no matter who walks away with the win. Advanced voting is available from now until Saturday.
Eligible voters can cast their ballot at any advance polling place in the province, so long as they provide their legal name and address with valid documentation like a driver’s license.
