Low turnout at DSU elections points to a larger problem

The Dalhousie Student Union had to extend the voting period of their recent general election to reach the minimum number of votes required to meet quorum, and still, only 12.5 per cent of Dalhousie University students voted.

A student government selected by a small minority of the student population cannot hope to do justice to the students it represents. In fact, it’s barely democratic. Is a government chosen by one in 10, really chosen by “the people?”

The low turnout could partly be due to the timing: voting opened on Feb. 10, and candidates only had one week to campaign before voting began, while the DSU held the past six elections in mid-March, giving the union more time to prepare.

Even so, the DSU general elections have struggled to attract voters in recent years. Since 2021, turnout has barely met the 10 per cent threshold required by DSU bylaws, ranging from 10.9 per cent to 12.9 per cent.

So, it’s no surprise so few people voted.

The small number of candidates, the short campaigning and voting period and regulations over the use of social media in campaigning may also have something to do with it.

Low voter turnout is also reflective of youth voting trends in Canadian elections more broadly. Young people aged 18-24 have the lowest voter turnout compared to other age groups, according to 2023 Elections Canada data.

The DSU election doesn’t carry the same weight as a federal election. Many of the candidates run unopposed, and the DSU president cannot send anyone to war or raise taxes.

Democracies are fragile. They need to be consistently defended and upheld. Nicole Bibbins Sedaca, the interim president and executive VP of Freedom House, a non-governmental organization that has been tracking the state of freedom and democracies in the world since the Second Wold War wrote in 2024:

“Upholding and defending democracy is not easy. It requires daily vigilance by all members of society, as well as the active participation of the governed. Democracy can be damaged or even lost when citizens and leaders fail to uphold its basic principles.”

The lack of student engagement in the DSU could be an indication that students don’t want a student union, or that they think it’s not important. I hope that’s not the case.

We don’t get to decide the university president, faculty deans, professors or even our dorm roommates. The student union executives and representatives are the only choice we get. The DSU is the only group that solely represents the interests of the students, and its job is to improve the student experience.

Dal students also pay $82 to the DSU each semester. While that’s nothing compared to the thousands paid in tuition, it’s still money we don’t get back.

The DSU election ballot is an emailed link that students can access on their phones. The only thing students have to do to cast their ballot is enter their student number, which everyone uses all the time. There’s no excuse for not voting.

And since school elections happen every year while federal elections generally happen only every few years, student elections could set the tone for students’ democratic participation.

“Indeed, student government may be a citizen’s first experience with politics in a system where they have full political rights,” Justin Patrick, a former PhD student at the University of Toronto, who studies student governments, wrote for the European Consortium for Political Research.

If Dal students want to see an effective student government and receive fair representation, standing by and complaining about the DSU isn’t enough; change is needed. We need to raise political awareness amongst students, and we need to raise the profile of union elections.

How can we hope to fight for student issues if we don’t care to elect the people meant to represent us?