When I watch sports, I tend to be someone who, when my team is down, thinks “there’s no way we can win!” and when they’re up, thinks “there’s no way we can lose!” rather than being somebody who knows that the momentum will go back and forth and anything can happen right up until the final buzzer sounds.
This election campaign has had many parallels. At the start of this campaign, I thought “well, the NDP will do okay but we’ll likely end up where we were before – maybe gaining a seat or two here and losing a seat or two there.”
My standard line to people who said “This is a wasted election – nothing will change” wasn’t that the NDP would find a groundswell of support in Quebec, the young and first-time voters which would see them challenging the Conservatives seemingly impenetrable lead. Instead, I would say “Well, if we end up in the same spot – everything might change. Harper might be forced out if he can’t obtain a majority. Ignatieff will likely be tossed if he can’t return the Liberals to power. And with Layton’s health issues, there’s a chance he may step aside as well.”
As it’s gone on and the polls have increasingly gone in the NDP’s favour, the “Orange Wave” has grown and this campaign has gone from “nothing will change” to “everything could change!”, I’ve gone from thinking “the score will remain 0-0” to struggling really hard not to allow myself to think that “wow – my team’s going to beat the other guys 10-9 in a shootout!”
Whatever happens tomorrow, it sounds like the NDP has already won. But go vote. And take your friends!
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