Canadians Go to the Polls (and why you should care)

And they're off!

I will be blogging frequently about this snap election the Prime Minster called, but for now a synopsis on how Canadians vote.

Political marketing is still an exciting field, and something all political parties take very seriously.

The big issue right now is the bar has been set very high for Stephen Harper as some polls are already showing him in majority territory.

There are three ways you can basically cast your vote in our parliamentary system. This makes for a plethora of different marketing strategies parties use, to capture your vote:

1. Vote for the leader - this works if a political party has a leader that is perceived to strong and in control but lacks in substance (read: policy) that resonates with their target audience. Expect to see take this road, with lots of him and very little of his party.
   
2. Vote for the party - multilateral ism at its best. This works if the leader isn't as strong individually, but has a diverse range of expertise on their front bench that can work together to bring about change or new ideas. Expect to see Stephane Dion play this card with his "Dream Team".
   
3. Vote for the individual - don't like the party or the leader? Then one can vote strictly on who's running locally. This strategy is most successful when an candidate has a household brand and is very popular in their riding. It's how Chuck Cadman, Carolyn Parrish, and Thomas Mulcair were elected
   

So how will Canadians decide? Usually its a combination of 2/3 above. One key aspect in swaying the vote is organization, but we'll leave that for tomorrow.

For now, I'm not placing any bets.....yet.