First Leader Debate 2011 Federal Election

The first of the leader’s debates wrapped up last night and the conclusion seems to be that it was boring, brought no party any winning edge and as Elizabeth May described after the debates – it was devoid of much of what matters. It was bad enough that a party running candidates in every riding and the recipients of nearly one million votes didn’t even get to speak, but those that did came off as scripted cardboard cutouts of talking heads.

While the Federal Politics Journal has always suggested people vote locally instead of focusing solely on the national leader of any one party, for many Canadians the national debates are the one time they get to hear and see the party leaders discuss and debate their ideas and solutions outside of the closed hell that is often Parliament. Of course locally fielded candidates may stray or offer slightly differing opinions than their party leader, and it is this that local voters should seek out before deciding whom to cast their vote for. And yes we know, some parties don’t allow their local candidates to even speak or be seen – we are looking at you Conservatives! If you want people to vote based only on your platform and national leader than make them both available. Taking a set amount of questions while slowly leaking your own platform on top of hiding local candidates from their constituents is not the best solution to a healthy democratic system.

We were going to really sit down and parse this debate but in the end there is not much to parse or to debate about the debate. If you got to pick a winner it would be the viewer we’d guess as even though the debate was shallow, they remained civil while trying to convince people to come to their side this election. The losers are of course the Green Party and anybody who wanted to see and hear Elizabeth May.

Tonight we get hockey then back to political reality the following day.

Related posts:

1. Corporate Tax Cuts and 2011 Election
2. 2011 Federal Election Voter Turnout
3. Green Party Leader Elizabeth May Denied Spot In Leaders’ Debate
4. 2011 Federal Election Campaign Trail
5. Sheila Fraser Draft Report An Election Changer?