The Nomination - A Black Box: How did it feel?
While no one enters politics expecting it to be easy, the nomination process can be particularly challenging. Many MPs we spoke to found the entire exercise exasperating and even absurd. “Terrible. Just horrendous, the worst political experience of my life,” said one MP.
Citizens were often simply corralled for the event and asked only to sign up for a party membership, show up and vote for their candidate. They were not asked to contribute to the party’s discussions in any meaningful way. And yet they were all official party members. “People who weren’t [from the party] bought memberships and voted for me, for that one night. The part I found troubling was creating instant supporters,” remarked another MP.
There was also damage inflicted during the contest. Wounds from nomination battles run particularly deep and few MPs who’d been involved in contested nominations reflected positively on the nomination process. “I ended up winning by, I think, two votes on the third ballot. It was unbelievable. I’d never been through anything like it.... Nominations seemed to be more personal than an election campaign. A general election is about platforms and leaders. Nominations are all about encouraging people to get out and vote. Because it tends to be more personal, there tends to be harder feelings after, and that’s not pleasant,” explained one MP. The contest is reduced to details of character, communication skills, and personal charm. Another MP concluded: “It can be nasty.”
Many MPs described the process as random, and were often unclear what was required to win. “Some 7,000 people bought membership cards. There were six of us running and they all ganged up against me on the second ballot. It was four o’clock in the morning or so by the time I won, with a 74 vote majority,” one MP recalled. Another described their long experience in navigating the nomination process: “Eventually, it came down to a number of meetings, and finally it was narrowed down to three candidates. There were around 400 people casting ballots at the [local] recreation centre. Those in the room had the right to vote, and whomever came out on top would be the candidate. I wound up winning that nomination by one vote. And that one vote margin changed my life.”
Despite the predominance of confusion and criticism, a few MPs mentioned two positive aspects of the nomination process: first, it was a practice round for the actual election, and second, it helped challenge and polish the contenders’ views. One MP described on it as a chance for candidates to debate issues, refine their strategies and gain greater confidence in their role as a public figure. “It was good practice for the general election,” said the MP.
A few others pointed out that, because the nomination race was usually among people with similar values, it allowed candidates to explore finer details of community issues and policies, exchanging ideas with each other and with the local party members.
At its best, the nomination process offered a chance to closely explore and debate issues that were important to the community the candidates hoped to serve in Ottawa.
At its worst, it was a manifestation of all the shallowest perceptions people have of politics – an opaque, manipulative and even cruel game – turning both citizens and candidates away from the political process altogether.
Most of the Parliamentarians we interviewed made the transition from a private to a public citizen incredibly quickly and felt deeply honoured to have the chance to serve the public. Whatever their successes in their previous careers, they were now sent to Ottawa to serve their communities, and the nation, in a job for which they had very little preparation, and for which there was no official job description.
As one MP remarked: “All of a sudden I said, ‘I’m going to Ottawa.’ I had never planned to do that. It was just one of those things that happened.”