LIBS1520: Political Science Unit Exercise - Electoral Issues in Canada

This assignment delves into Canadian electoral issues, examining challenges like electoral reform, voting rights, and the impact of media coverage. The student analyzes the chosen topic, which focuses on electoral issues, specifically advocating for equality and the right to vote, and identifies relevant political parties such as the New Democratic Party and the Liberal Party. It explores the societal impacts of these issues, their relation to democracy, and the effectiveness of protests. The assignment also discusses how media coverage reflects inequality, and concludes by highlighting the relevance of social sciences in daily life, including its impact on students, families, and workers, emphasizing the value of understanding social science concepts in navigating daily challenges. The assignment uses APA format with citations and references.

Social science
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1. Consider the item that you selected for this assignment and the discussion. Why did I pick
it, what appealed to me about the issue?
The item picked is based on electoral issues in Canada. The item selected in this paper explains
how politics in Canada have been faced with serious issues for the past ten years. There is a
number of issues which are attributed to the electoral process in Canada (Braveman, & Gottlieb,
2014). Some of the electoral challenges in Canada include; electoral reform, the right of
foreigners to vote, the voting age for citizens in the country and criminal politicians. These are
some of the political issues facing the country.
The reason why I have picked this item is that most of the people in Canada are not aware of
their voting rights and that's why I would like to reveal some of the concepts which instill right
to vote. Also, the foreigners in Canada are limited to access voting rights and that's why I want to
emphasize an aspect of equality through the discussion. All people in Canada ought to exercise
the right to vote. The main issue which appealed to the topic is the need to advocate for equality
in all fields in Canada (Cajaiba-Santana, 2014).
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/world/americas/top-issues-in-the-canadian-election.html
2. What Canadian political party would best support personal view about the topic?
The political parties supporting my personal view are;
The New Democratic Party.
The Liberal Party.
The two parties focus on the political spectrum in Canada.
https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-5-main-political-parties-in-Canada.

3 Impacts of the issue in society.
The main issue in the electoral item is fighting for rights to vote in Canada. Generally, the main
agenda of voting in any nation is to change the existing government thus inducing new blood for
governance. When people in Canada are limited to access the voting rights then you find that the
existing government will not be administering inappropriate. Hindering rights to vote is a form
limiting the powers of democracy within the country (Csikszentmihalyi & Sawyer, 2014). Voting
helps the society to elect an individual to enter the new government thus representing their needs
and helping when necessary. My point of view is that if I were to be given an opportunity to
solve issues I could have passed laws that relate to voting rights.
4. How the issue relates to democracy
The electoral process involves use of electing someone who will represent the power of people in
government. Democracy on its own as a process advocate for the power or people and equality.
When the voting rights are observed with all policies being adhered to then the issue of
democracy applies. The value of the issue is that elected individuals are the only individuals who
guide the majority and they work under the power of majority thus enhancing democracy within
society and the entire country (Kwon & Adler, 2014).
5. Are violent protests a symbol of democracy or a criminal act? Whether protests (violent or
peaceful) are effective.
Basically, the concept of protest describes the image of a small number of individuals that is
minorities or groups who take a public stand to air their grievances. The groups' carry out rallies
to either resist a certain aspect within society or even in the country. Other people may be against
something while other groups protests to stop some behaviors which are not good to society and

to the nation. Most of the groups protesting emphasize on democracy meaning that they fight for
their needs. This forms the say for the groups thus showing how democracy is exercised in those
rallies which are peaceful unlike to those rallies which are violent meaning they are more
criminal act than being a show of democracy. Therefore, this shows that violent protest in society
are ineffective while the peaceful protest is effective and that's what all people could focus on
(Lynd, 2015).
6. Media impacts the coverage of political science issues. Explanation of how media news
coverage can reflect inequality.
Basically, media in the modern world plays a big role in handling political issues in our societies.
Different authors have tried to explain how media coverage helps in handling politically related
issues in society. Some of the main impacts of media coverage in political issues include; Media
acts as a source of information (Mahoney, 2012).Also, the media acts as a watchdog in our
country. In addition, media also acts as a platform for a public voice.
Influence of media over coverage.
Media influences political issues in different ways. They provide news regarding to particular
political science issues. Through this approach the public will be in position to get appropriate
knowledge related to the political science issues in the country. Also, media influences how
politicians interacts with the public when discussing the political science issues (Messing &
Westwood, 2014). This is evident on how new technology is streaming events which shows
virtual interaction between the public and the political leaders. Most of the news related to
political science tend to induce attention to the public while others have no attention to the
public. Therefore media coverage influences the spread of information and spread of any issue

that is related to political science in society. Those issue which gives attention are the one related
to social, political and economic aspects. The contribution of media to these aspects is to give
direction to society and at same time creating awareness.
How media reflect inequality
On another hand media coverage can reflect inequality in society. This means sometimes the
influence of media can induce negativity in society (Mahoney, 2012). For instance use of
rumors, conspiracies and fake news promotes inequality within society. Generally, political news
are full of stories which are either true or not true and they spread via the media. The spread of
fake news accounts for inequality. Those memes and other links trending in social media about
the political issues accounts for satirical issues
7. How I think the social sciences are relevant to my life. How social sciences impact life as a
student, family member, friend, worker, etc. Why is an understanding of social sciences
valuable?
Social sciences are important in our daily lives. Social sciences give a sense of direction and also
a sense of identity in society (Newton, Stolle & Zmerli, 2018). As a subject social science will
prepare a career path for the student in school. This means that knowledge of social sciences
prepares one for employment. On another hand, social sciences encourage togetherness in
families and societies? This applies to friends we have in our life's whereby social sciences
demands for love and togetherness within the society. The other impact is on the workers who
are able to learn the concept of equality and fairness by using social science concepts. Therefore,

to sum up, the knowledge of social science is valuable since it equips one appropriate knowledge
that will help in handling the daily challenges.
References
Braveman, P., & Gottlieb, L. (2014). The social determinants of health: it's time to consider the
causes of the causes. Public health reports, 129(1_suppl2), 19-31.
Cajaiba-Santana, G. (2014). Social innovation: Moving the field forward. A conceptual
framework. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 82, 42-51.
Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Sawyer, K. (2014). Creative insight: The social dimension of a solitary
moment. In The systems model of creativity, 8(78), (pp. 73-98). Springer, Dordrecht.
Kwon, S. W., & Adler, P. S. (2014). Social capital: Maturation of a field of research. Academy of
management review, 39(4), 412-422.
Lynd, R. S. (2015). Knowledge for what: The place of social science in American culture, 8th
edition, (Vol. 1319). Princeton University Press.
Mahoney, J. (2012). The logic of process tracing tests in the social sciences. Sociological
Methods & Research, 41(4), 570-597.
Messing, S., & Westwood, S. J. (2014). Selective exposure in the age of social media:
Endorsements trump partisan source affiliation when selecting news
online. Communication research, 41(8), 1042-1063.
Newton, K., Stolle, D., & Zmerli, S. (2018). Social and political trust. The Oxford handbook of
social and political trust, 8(78), 37.