The posters are up and the fight is on as the Local and European elections are only four weeks away now. Wednesday morning saw the lampposts and pillars of the towns, villages, and roads of Mayo covered in faces smiling at us asking for our number one and two, three and four, in whatever order we prefer.
While the posters are customary the oldest form of getting my vote and your vote is the face to face, door to door, canvass by the candidates. A chance for the candidates to get themselves out there to introduce themselves to the public, tell us a little about themselves and what they want to do in the next five years, and why we should give them a vote on June 5. Some will be greeted at the door with “Where have you been for the last five years?” and “What have you done since the last time out?” Engaging with the people on the doorstep is what you expect, while you may not share the same political colour as the man or woman who comes calling you do expect them to tell you a little about what they stand for.
Expecting and getting are two different things, as one candidate who came calling upon this writer’s home last weekend proved. The conversation went along the lines of “Hello, I’m running for election for the county council, would you think of giving me a vote, here’s my flyer.” And before even a question could be asked or barely acknowledging the flyer, he was gone.
Come on lads, you may not know me, or think that I have absolutely no interest in local politics, or even politics of any kind, but I do. And this quick fire 30 second meeting is not the kind that is going to sway me to give you a tick down the ballot paper somewhere. I do exercise my right to vote as I think everyone should. There are thousands of people in the same age bracket as me who do not, and this kind of half hearted canvas is not going to do much to convince them that they should vote at all.
All politics is local they say, well if it is make the effort to engage with the locals, even if you assume they are indifferent to the whole political scene. They are the ones who are losing their jobs, the ones who bought into the dream, the ones who are mortgaged to the hilt with 100 per cent mortgages as they raced to get on the property ladder, while all around us told us that the Celtic tiger would never end.
Local government is the most basic form of contact the average man has with the whole sphere of politics, it is supposed to be accessible to people, and their locally elected councillors are supposed to be their first port of call on a issue. Town councils and county councils can be accused of being a talking shop where nothing really gets done, but the vast majority of those elected to these councils are trying to do their best for their community, to see them thrive and grow and have proper services. They do what they can having been given a mandate by the people. But they will only get that endorsement from the people when they engage with them, posters and posing for pictures is one thing, but when you come knocking at doors remember that every vote is as important as the other and making an effort on the door step could make the difference as to where my number one, two, or three goes come June 5.
