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Federal Election 2015 and the making of election issues

With another Federal Election looming, the jostling for ownership of the election issue appears to have begun with special interest groups and political parties jockeying to make their issue the focus of the election. We convene a panel to look at how certain election issues come to be, why they have the power to make or break campaigns, and how...
CBC Radio ·
With another Federal Election looming, the jostling for ownership of the election issue appears to have begun with special interest groups and political parties jockeying to make their issue the focus of the election. We convene a panel to look at how certain election issues come to be, why they have the power to make or break campaigns, and how skilled political parties are at capitalizing on them when they arise.

Forty-five per cent of all health care dollars are spent on seniors. With the number of seniors set to double over the next fifteen years, we anticipate that costs will skyrocket unless we start doing things very fundamentally differently. So we think we need a national seniors strategy now, that involves all levels of government with Ottawa taking the lead, and we intend to make it a ballot issue in the 2015 federal election.Dr. Chris Simpson, Canadian Medical Association

Canadian Medical Association president Dr. Chris Simpson makes a good point. But he'll have to get in line.

Heading into the next federal vote, everyone from environmentalists, to veterans, to anti-poverty activists would like their concerns to become the big issue that defines the 2015 Federal Election: The issue that gets Canadians fired up, and drives them all the way to the ballot box.

Today we're asking how certain election issues come to be, why they have the power to make or break campaigns, and how skilled political parties are at capitalizing on them when they arise.

To help us do that, we were joined by three people.

  • Ian Capstick is a partner at advertising agency Mediastyle, and a former press secretary to Jack Layton.

  • Tasha Kheiriddin is a columnist at the National Post and iPolitics.

  • Warren Kinsella is a political consultant and former adviser to Prime Minister Jean Chretien.


How do you feel about elections being dominated by a single issue? Do you vote based on election issues? Why or Why not. Let us know!

Tweet us @thecurrentcbc. Or e-mail us through our website. Find us on Facebook. Call us toll-free at 1 877 287 7366..

This segment was produced by The Current's Shannon Higgins and Leif Zapf-Gijle.

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