My Vote, My Future: Keith Poore

27-year-old Vancouver resident Keith Poore has stood for office before (Keith Poore)

Ahead of the BC election, Daily Hive is profiling young voters from across the province. Want to join in and share your thoughts? Email [email protected], subject line: My Future.

Who are you?

Keith Poore.

How old are you?

27.

What do you do?

I am a science teacher and a software developer. I also run a local advocacy group called 123Vancouver, aiming to bring proportional representation to municipal elections. I am also the Vice President of Fair Vote Canada – Vancouver Chapter.

Where do you live?

I live in the West End of Vancouver.

Have you voted before?

I have voted a total of five times.

Do you plan on voting this time?

I will be voting this time around, yes.

Does your family influence how you vote?

Not really. Growing up, my parents didn’t talk politics. I didn’t even know they voted until I ran for City Council.

How closely do you follow BC politics?

I follow BC politics relatively closely. I follow municipal and federal politics more.

Do you know who your local candidates are?

I do. There is Spencer Chandra Herbert (the incumbent), Nigel Elliot, and James Marshall. I think there is a libertarian running as well, though I haven’t heard too much about him or her. [Note: The BC Libertarian candidate is John Clarke]

Can you name the three party leaders?

Absolutely. There is Christy Clark (BC Liberals), James Filippelli (Your Political Party), John Horgan (BC NDP) and Andrew Weaver (BC Green Party).

Would you ever consider running for office?

I have run for office, municipally in Guelph, Ontario. I felt that youth issues were not often considered at City Council and their issues should be made a priority as much as anyone else’s issues. I may consider another bid for office at some point.

What issues do you care most about?

Electoral reform

Electoral reform is my #1 issue. Proportional representation makes parties work together to come to a better solution for citizens’ issues.

It is important because all issues brought to City Council, and the decisions made, are often in a partisan light or to score political points. Sometimes there are better views expressed by other city councillors, but due to partisanship they are often ignored.

This damages our democracy. It breeds cynicism for voters and less people are likely to engage. The most impactful level of government on citizens are local governments, yet voter turnout is lower in civic elections than in any other level of government.

I’d like to see the provincial government give cities more flexibility to choose their voting system, as has been done in Ontario about a year ago. Cities in Ontario can switch over to using a ranked ballot for their elections. A ranked ballot in our current at-large system would result in a proportional voting system and a proportional outcome.

Are you a young British Columbian and eligible to vote in the BC election? We would love to profile you. Email [email protected], subject line: My Future, to find out more.

Daily Hive is your home for BC Election coverage throughout the campaign period. To access our full BC Election coverage click here: Battleground BC.

My Vote, My Future: Keith Poore on BC Election 2017