The Couch Is Not a Ballot Box
Nanaimo Votes 2026 — Get Informed. Do Your Civic Duty.
There is a dangerous myth in Nanaimo.
It goes something like this:
“My vote doesn’t matter.”
“It doesn’t make any difference who gets elected.”
“They’re all the same.”
“I don’t follow politics.”
“I’m too busy.”
“I forgot.”
“I’ll complain later.”
And that last one may be the most honest one of all.
Because many citizens who cannot find time to vote somehow manage to find time to complain about taxes, roads, crime, housing, city spending, downtown decay, and decisions made at City Hall.
Here is the uncomfortable truth: democracy does not run on autopilot. It does not protect itself. It does not work properly when citizens treat elections like background noise between television shows, hockey games, social media scrolling, and the daily grind.
The Numbers Should Wake People Up
In Nanaimo’s 2022 municipal election, only 24.2% of eligible voters cast a ballot. That means roughly three out of four eligible voters stayed home.
The winning mayoral candidate received 12,390 votes in a city with 77,219 eligible voters. That works out to about 16% of eligible voters choosing the mayor.
Again, that is not a personal criticism of the mayor. It is a warning light flashing on the dashboard of local democracy.
| Election | Eligible Voters | Ballots Cast | Turnout | Winning Mayoral Vote | Winner’s Share of Eligible Voters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 69,138 | 27,475 | 39.7% | Leonard Krog: 20,040 | 29.0% |
| 2022 | 77,219 | 18,664 | 24.2% | Leonard Krog: 12,390 | 16.0% |
In 2018, turnout was better, but still hardly inspiring. There were 69,138 eligible voters, 27,475 ballots cast, and voter turnout was 39.7%. The winning mayoral candidate received 20,040 votes — about 29% of eligible voters.
Then came 2022. More eligible voters. Fewer ballots. Lower turnout. Less public participation.
That should bother every taxpayer in Nanaimo.
Because while citizens stay home, City Hall keeps moving. Budgets keep growing. Taxes keep rising. Borrowing decisions keep coming. Major projects keep rolling forward. Staff reports keep shaping policy. Committees keep meeting. Council keeps voting.
The machinery of government does not stop because citizens are not paying attention.
In fact, government often works best for insiders when the public is not paying attention.
A quiet public gallery is convenient. A disengaged electorate is convenient. A population that wakes up only after the tax bill arrives is convenient.
But it is not healthy democracy.
Voting Is the Bare Minimum
Voting is not the whole of citizenship, but it is the bare minimum. It is the front door. It is the one moment when every citizen, regardless of income, title, connections, or insider status, gets the same basic power: one vote.
That is a privilege millions of people around the world have never had. In some places, people risk prison, violence, intimidation, or worse just to demand the right to choose their leaders.
In Nanaimo, we can do it freely, peacefully, and locally — and three quarters of eligible voters could not be bothered in 2022.
That is not just apathy. That is civic neglect.
The Excuses Do Not Stand Up
“My vote makes no difference.”
Really? Local elections can be decided by small margins. Council seats can be won or lost by a few hundred votes, sometimes less.
Even when a mayoral race is not close, council races matter. The people elected to council vote on taxes, spending, borrowing, zoning, policing, infrastructure, public safety, and the direction of the city.
Your vote may not decide every race, but your absence helps decide the culture of the whole election.
“It doesn’t matter who gets elected.”
Then why do taxes change? Why do policies change? Why do projects get approved? Why do staffing levels grow? Why do some priorities get funded and others ignored?
If elected officials did not matter, nobody would campaign for the job. Nobody would donate. Nobody would lobby. Nobody would seek influence.
Elections matter very much to the people who understand power. The question is whether ordinary taxpayers understand it too.
“I don’t know enough to vote.”
That is not a reason to stay home. That is a reason to get informed.
Read candidate platforms. Watch council clips. Look at tax increases. Ask who supports a Core Services Review. Ask who is serious about public safety. Ask who understands infrastructure. Ask who respects taxpayers. Ask who gives straight answers.
Ask who has the courage to challenge the system instead of simply joining it.
No citizen needs to become a policy expert. But every voter should know enough to make a serious choice.
“I’m too busy.”
Too busy to vote, but not too busy to pay the tax bill?
Too busy to vote, but not too busy to complain about potholes, crime, downtown disorder, closed businesses, rising fees, and the cost of living?
Voting takes less time than watching one episode of a favourite soap, scrolling through Facebook, or standing in line for coffee.
The difference is that voting may actually affect the place where you live.
If You Do Not Vote, You Are Not Neutral
This is the point Nanaimo needs to hear before the 2026 election:
If you do not vote, you are not neutral. You are handing your voice to someone else.
You are letting a smaller group of people choose the mayor and council who will make decisions affecting your taxes, your neighbourhood, your roads, your parks, your safety, your housing costs, your business climate, and your city’s future.
That is not responsible citizenship.
Nanaimo does not need more people waking up after the election. Nanaimo needs people awake before the election.
Get informed. Ask questions. Challenge candidates. Read beyond slogans. Look past smiling campaign photos. Find out who has a serious plan and who is just offering pleasant words.
Pay attention before the ballot box, not after the budget is passed.
The 2026 election is not a spectator sport.
It is not something to leave to politicians, insiders, activists, unions, special interests, or the usual small circle of voters who always show up.
This city belongs to the citizens.
Your City. Your Taxes. Your Say.
But only if you use it.
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