It’s time to have our say: every vote matters

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Election day is less than a week away. Over the past months we’ve worked hard to put social issues on the agenda of candidates and strived to help you, our members, be more informed and engaged about the parties, issues, and candidates.

Links to election resources and information on polling stations and advance voting can be found in the sidebar of this email. Put them to good use (if you haven’t already) and, more than anything else, make sure you vote on or before May 9.

Hard decisions about the social care sector will need to be made over the coming years. You and people like you across the province have the responsibility of deciding who will make those decisions.

For this reason—and many other reasons—I would urge you to check our daily election news coverage in the Daily News Clippings as the parties make their final promises. I would remind you to research where the candidates in your riding stand on the issues that mean the most to you. And I would challenge you to talk about those issues, those candidates, and the importance of voting with the people in your social circle—inspire them to care as much as you do.

I would also like to take a moment to acknowledge the great work done by our sector allies in helping inform the public dialogue over the past months. We’re proud to be working alongside great organizations also promoting the importance of social care and the value of all the people that make up our communities.

From First Call’s strong messages on child poverty, to Inclusion BC’s reminders that many British Columbians living with disabilities do so in poverty, to Fostering Change’s SupportThe700 campaign—these voices (and many others) continue to support and inspire the people of BC.

With less than a week left until we head to the polls, I encourage you to talk about the issues you care about—the issues we should all are about. Use our ‘Life in BC’ Snapshot fact sheets (see the sidebar for more info). Offer to drive someone to the polls or bring a friend (or friends) with you when you cast your ballot.

It’s not a cliché; every vote matters.