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I did not realize this was the proper way until i read this article. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manitoba-election-decline-vote-1.3536349  
 
If unhappy about the candidate selections, you can exercise your right.

What would happen if the majority of the people that voted declined their ballot? That means that the majority have voted for none of the above.  
 
Would that mean that the parties would have to try again? Would the parties be scrapped and have to rebuild from the ground up with a new set of candidates? Would we actually get good government after that?  
 
Ohhhhh, to dream...

What surprised me the most was only 440 people last election declined their vote!

MAP said "What surprised me the most was only 440 people last election declined their vote! "

And if you look at the historical listings, there have been some years a lot more people did.  
 
I don't have the time to investigate who was running in the elections that had higher turn outs, but it would be interesting.

I think we will see more people declining their vote than 2011. I wouldn't be surprised if 1,000 Manitobans decline their vote this time around.. but we won't see a mass declining to the point where a recall election/by-elections have to be called

I see declining your ballot as simply not having enough interest in your civic duty to weigh all your options and maybe making a tough choice and cast a vote. You might not have the choice of casting a vote for a party or candidate that matches your ideals perfectly, but you always have the ability to cast a vote for the party that [b]you[/b] think may be the best of the offerings, or at the very least, a vote for anyone but (you fill in the blank).  
 
I'm not real fond of the choices this time around, but I've payed enough attention to know what I think the right choice is. I'll be voting (I always have), for a specific candidate / party, that I feel will do the best for all of us out of what there is to choose from.  
 
Declining your ballot may make a statement, but to me that statement is "I can't be bothered to make a tough choice".

I disagree. Declining your vote is a way to tell the parties running that they are not in touch with all Manitobans needs. If you see 5000 people in the election decline their vote, what does that say? 5000 unhappy people.

If someone believes that there are no right choices and no party stands for what you believe in - Declining your vote is saying - ( none of you represent what i think is important. ) I have followed the election and all i see is bickering back and forth and nobody who will take the bull by the horns and say enough is enough.  
 
Edited by MAP, 2016-04-16 13:15:12

I doubt the winning party would be even the slightest bit concerned over how many declined ballots there were. The others, the losers if you will, a lot of the faces will change before the next election. Who really is there, to learn any sort of lesson, from the number of declined ballots.  
 

Who is there to learn anything from history or things that have happened in the past. Society learns and evolves from history.

A Declined vote is still a vote - It is not a spoiled ballot - If you read the article it states that. And it is not considered pouting - it is exercising your right in a democracy.  
 
 
 
Edited by MAP, 2016-04-16 13:59:51

 
I find it humorous that some people actually think that OUR right to decline a ballot is the adult equivalent to kicking our feet. It's a right that allows us to say "Hey, nobody is actually here to make things better" a declined ballot literally means LETS all fight for something better. To go and vote is important, even if it's to decline - anyone that takes the time to do so isn't a person that takes it lightly, or "can't be bothered".  
 
I will take full advantage of my right to decline this time around.

Timetowakeup said "Well let me guess if a majority of voters declined their ballot the party that comes second to declined ballots wins right? So how is that a win? "

Declining your vote will make no difference to the "elite" parties, since, in Manitoba anyway, we will see a NDP or PC government no matter what else happens. What it will say to the smaller parties like the Greens and Liberals is that you don't see any of them to be a viable option to the elites. In any case, even if a majority of voters decline, you will still have a PC or NDP government elected in Manitoba.  
 
On the other hand, if everyone who is thinking of declining their ballot just because they don't like the NDP or PC options would cast a vote for a smaller party instead, THAT would send a message. An action like that could potentially elect more "third party" members and let the elites know that they are not the only game in town any more.  
 
If you want to decline your ballot because you don't like the NDP or PCs any more, and are not willing to give the smaller parties a shot, [i]then just stay home already.[/i] You'll achieve the same result either way.

Timetowakeup said "Well let me guess if a majority of voters declined their ballot the party that comes second to declined ballots wins right? So how is that a win? "

 
Was going to answer this but it was already done :D  
 
 
Edited by FarmerMike, 2016-04-16 16:49:07

In the article linked above it states that a declined ballot is a legitimate way to protest. The definition of a protest is a statement or action expressing disapproval of or objection to something. Protest are to change the future so even thought my decline may seem pointless - like a waste of time- it is a right that could change the future; we are as a whole forced to look at the data collected from each election and with that date comes declined ballots which shows us that 440 people were unhappy last election; well what's 440 people anyway? but with more declined ballots comes more questions as to why those people declined, which should or could bring change; to find out why these people declined, to find out why declined ballots are on the rise - to reevaluate the process - to be forced to dig deeper into it and when forced to look deeper into a situation usually comes change. That is the point to me - to bring awareness, to hopefully force acknowledgement. That is a win in my books.

Unless someone, some party, or some other entity is actually looking at the number of declined ballots, both to determine why they declined their ballots and what could be done to effect change that would make a difference, the protest is pretty much falling on deaf ears.  
 
I certainly don't dispute anyone's right to decline their ballot. As a way of protest though, I don't see it being much more effective than raising your middle finger to the election process. The only real difference is someone counts the declined ballots. Can anyone tell me who, if anyone, is looking at those numbers and doing something meaningful with them.

Declining your ballot is NOT spoiling your ballot. A spoiled ballot is ruined one way or another and means NOTHING.  
 
A declined ballot is deliberate where you write "declined" on the front of the ballot. It may be a protest vote, but it is not a spoiled ballot.  
 
If a lot of people decline their ballots, maybe the politicians would look at them and see all the dissatisfied voters and maybe smarten up?  
 
I fully agree, we need a major shake up for the parties in MB as they suck. There is no way that anyone can organize another party for this election. Maybe for the next one. Timetowakeup, are you going to get it started?  
 

Is there an advantage to voting for a smaller party vs declining? If my choice to send a message to the bigger parties is to decline or toss a vote to a small party that I don't particularly fit with either - if that smaller party may benefit from some increased funding due to getting a share of the votes then I will vote for them. if it makes no difference the I will decline.

Starhc said "Is there an advantage to voting for a smaller party vs declining? If my choice to send a message to the bigger parties is to decline or toss a vote to a small party that I don't particularly fit with either - if that smaller party may benefit from some increased funding due to getting a share of the votes then I will vote for them. if it makes no difference the I will decline. "

Right now, the smaller parties will receive cash per vote and get extra funding. However, if Pallister and the PC's form a majority government, one of their promises is to eliminate that subsidy. The only thing that will accomplish is to defund the smaller parties and make it harder for them to campaign next time. It's another Harper-style trick to eliminate the competition in the next contest.

MAP said "I did not realize this was the proper way until i read this article. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manitoba-election-decline-vote-1.3536349     If unhappy about the candidate selections, you can exercise your right. "

It states to mark and X by the name of the candidate you want to vote for OR mark declined across the front of the ballet? Does that mean across the names? What is the front of the ballet?

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/video/manitoba-voters-decline-vote-provincial-193702224.html

For the information, JR. I kind of figured it worked that way. It seems more productive to send a vote that way so that at least another party can benefit. A 'none of these guys' vote from me would be meant to send a message the party leaders who hold the power - but that is a waste to me if I could chip away at their strength by strengthening the alternatives with some extra funding. It isn't much but at least I feel like it has a purpose. We need more/different voices and ideas. I will encourage others to do the same - I hear a lot of, "I would vote for this party but they won't get in..." - well if all of those people voted for the least crappy option instead of declining, at least you are getting a little jab in at unit parties at the same time. Each vote for another party is not only denying those big parties a few more dollars of funding but it is also allocating it towards who strengthening alternatives. Sounds like a solid option to me.

I don't believe that declining one's vote has any impact whatsoever on the mainstream parties. What they care about is how their opposition did.  
 
In the 2011 election there were about 433,000 votes cast. As noted above, 440 ballots were declined, or about 0.1% of all ballots. Do the parties care about 0.1% ? Not likely. They could compensate for that by working harder on getting their voters to the polls.  
 
Even if we saw a 10 fold increase in declined ballots, that would still only account for 1% of all ballots.  
 
I am all for electoral reform. Declining ballots is not the path. De-funding fringe parties is not the answer, and is anti-democratic.  
 
We need a real alternative. We need a party and leaders who will be honest with voters, even if doing so delivers a message that voters are uncomfortable with. Politicians should be models of integrity, and not the epitome of small-mindedness.  
 
In this election, the conduct of all three parties and their leaders is far from acceptable.