First-time voters keen to exercise their democratic right

Ajang Deng knows the importance of voting.

The first time he voted was in 2011, in the South Sudanese independence referendum, to decide whether the region would remain a part of Sudan or become an independent country.

“It was an election that would define us, it was important,” Deng said Thursday.

It was a landslide: 98 per cent of voters supported independence.

Deng will vote in his first federal election as a new Canadian on April 28.

“Being someone of an immigrant background, usually our voices are not being heard or not being covered. So I look forward to vote for the leaders that align with what Canadian citizens really would love to see,” he said.

In the 2021 federal election, naturalized Canadian citizens — who’ve been here 10 years or less since immigrating — voted at a rate of 66 per cent, figures from Statistics Canada show.

In that same year, 44.7 per cent of first-time electors voted, compared to 53.6 per cent in 2019.

Deng says immigrant voices can get lost in the political landscape due to language and social barriers.

He is struggling to understand where and how to cast his ballot.

“I don’t actually have the right resources to direct me where it should be going,” he said.

On Saturday, Immigration Partnership Winnipeg is hosting an event to promote its “Got Citizenship, Go Vote” campaign for first-time voters and new Canadians.

“Being someone of an immigrant background, usually our voices are not being heard or not being covered.”–Ajang Deng

The non-profit is holding meetings and making informational videos and literature to get the word out on how to vote and why it matters.

Project manager Carolina Meneses Zamora says sometimes immigrants don’t have the time or resources to vote, or they come from countries where elections aren’t held, or they have bad experiences interacting with the democratic process.

“Some people don’t have a lot of trust in the process,” she said.

Her goal is to educate people about how Canada’s electoral system works so they understand their vote matters.

In Winnipeg Centre, where about 33 per cent of constituents are immigrants, as per the 2021 census, Liberal candidate Rahul Walia is working to get the vote out to new Canadians and first-time voters in his riding.

Walia, a first-generation Canadian, knows too well the barriers immigrants face while participating in the democratic process.

“I always take it upon myself to educate those around me,” he said. “Seeing the voter apathy around me, it was something where I said I want to make sure people are involved.”

As he campaigns, Walia has noticed there’s confusion about how to vote, and some people question whether voting matters.

Walia will tell attendees at Saturday’s event about the federal election process and the impact voting will have on their lives, including in relation to immigration policies.

“Seeing the voter apathy around me, it was something where I said I want to make sure people are involved.”–Rahul Walia

Walia also makes a point of telling young voters their voice matters in Canada’s democracy.

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“Immigrants, young people… our voices matter in the system. We are a part of the fabric of Canada and we are an important voice that contributes economically, but socially as well,” he said.

Deng agrees.

“Voting is important because usually the only way for our voices to be heard is through casting votes, through choosing the leaders that would represent us or leaders that would present our interests,” he said. “So it’s a way of expressing ourselves or making decisions for the for the country at large.”

The event takes place at the South Sudanese Community Centre at 129 Dagmar St., from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca

Nicole Buffie
Multimedia producer

Nicole Buffie is a reporter for the Free Press city desk. Born and bred in Winnipeg, Nicole graduated from Red River College’s Creative Communications program in 2020 and worked as a reporter throughout Manitoba before joining the Free Press newsroom as a multimedia producer in 2023. Read more about Nicole.

Every piece of reporting Nicole produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.