The Heart And Soul

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "A Febrile Argument": 
The engaged and political measure only a small number of our town's residents. A dispute or issue amongst that group can't be claimed to be town-wide. 
Those calling for change and those responding to that call were only a tiny fraction of the populace. The overwhelming majority of Aurorans just went about their daily lives without an inkling of any kerfuffle. 
You may find that sad, or hard to believe, but that's the situation. How many even bother to get out and vote one day every four years?

*****************
"How many even bother to get out and vote one day every four years"
I don't find it sad or hard to believe. It's  a simple statement of reality.
I  find  the suggestion that  people who do pay attention to municipal affairs should be discounted entirely because so many do not.
Every time we have an election, I  hear the lament about how few do go out to vote. And what can be done about it.

I think about changes  in the years I've been involved. 
.
The first was to  have elections every twenty-four months instead of twelve Then it was thirty -six months. Then  forty-eight months
. 
They were not about encouraging people to get involved. 
They were  always about accommodating the City of Toronto. 

Voting privilege  was extended  down to age eighteen .
It  increased the voters list.  Not the percentage of people voting. Probably shrank it.
Early on , I realised  apartment buildings  were not productive  places to spend time and literature.They were comfortable and quick on a cold November night. But they did not produce votes.
Analyses of polls indicate tenants have less inclination to vote than property owners.
I was a tenant once. I understand. I never thought of rent  being influenced by anyone  except  the landlord
 The principle  applies  to people  between ages of  eighteen and twenty-one. If  property isn't owned , property taxes are not paid. Decisions related to property taxes are not relevant.  Ergo!  why should they vote in municipal elections.
I hereby acknowledge I never related to municipal elections until I owned a property.

Dates for  the election were  changed. Twice  It would be easier for seniors to get out and vote earlier, they argued.

Seniors didn't need encouragement to vote. They always turned out first at the polls.Always knew what was going on.Even when they were tenants. 

There was a time, before my time, when only property owners were allowed to vote on a money vote. If a Council was contemplating a significant expenditure, only those who  paid  taxes were allowed to  vote on the expenditure. 
What a novel  idea. If the money isn't coming out of your pocket, you got nuthin' to say about it. 

We have something  still called "Local Improvement "tax.
If a  group wanted something like a quarter of a million traffic calming plan, the municipality had to implement a  formal  petition  exactly describing the plan  and attendant cost.
A minimum of seventy-five per cent of the property owners had to agree to the  tax being attached to their  properties.
Bearing  the  cost for a project has a salutary effect on support for a project.
People had to be informed. They had to sign on the dotted line.

The last change is how voters lists are prepared. No longer do people go out in pairs knocking on doors to obtain names of voters within the home.
Census lists are used. The  census  names residents in Canada. Not all residents  have a right  to vote. Only Canadians.
The voters  list is larger than it ought to be. 
It's not known at any given time how many on the list have no right to vote.
But  the list is longer than it ought to be so the percentage of people who vote is smaller.

When we first bought a home in  Aurora, we quickly became aware of how often people moved .In a new subdivision for sale signs stand out.
There were many reasons. It was a fact of  Canadian life. 
How long does it take for a place to feel like home? Like you belong. Why let yourself feel it, if there is  no permanence in your situation.
If a study was worth doing, I think it would show the percentage of people who vote is the same percentage, who feel this  is their place, their home, the place they will raise their children and hopefully enjoy their grandchildren .
Is it a large percentage? 
Considering  growth, impermanence of jobs. marriages, life's vicissitudes, shifting populations, I don't think so.
Do they count? Most certainly they do.
They are the heart and soul of the community.