Fact Check

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Time for ranked ballots?

Re: Get out and exercise your franchise (Editorial, Oct. 24)

Declining turnout is indeed a threat to our democracy and, while I am grateful that the editorial mentioned proportional representation, the issue on the municipal level can be solved far more simply — using ranked-choice voting.

In the last Winnipeg municipal election, the mayor “won” the election with only 27 per cent of the vote. Multiply that by the turnout of 37.5 per cent and the mayor’s positive mandate — the portion of the electorate that voted for him as mayor — drops to a paltry 10 per cent. That number should shock us into an awareness that the single-mark ballot has failed us miserably.

This is the Mayor results.

These are all the Councillors.

Councillor for Charleswood – Tuxedo – Westwood

Councillor for Daniel McIntyre

Imagine being a young athlete who loves volleyball but attends a school without a net or even a ball.

For many students in Winnipeg, access to basic sporting equipment is something they rarely think about.

However, during my visit to Red Sucker Lake First Nation in northern Manitoba, I witnessed a very different reality. The local school did not have volleyball nets or balls. As someone who has had the opportunity to compete in volleyball across Canada and internationally, this experience made me realize how easily we take these opportunities for granted.

How can we expect young Indigenous athletes to discover their potential when they don’t even have the basic equipment needed to play? Talent and determination can exist in every community but without access to opportunities, that potential may never be realized.

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: I was secretly looking forward to being Boss Witch this Halloween. I’m a good-looking woman, and my new love thinks I’m quite sexy. But he just requested I fulfil a Halloween sex fantasy of his — including costume and masks — where he directs the whole show. Now the pressure is on, and I am turning off.

We’re just too much alike! In the past, I’ve come up with great fantasy nights for Halloween, and my men in those times were willing to play a subordinate role if that’s what I asked. But this new man wants a turn “directing” the show! I do not feel excited thinking about that. What should I do?

— Always Been In Charge, Elmwood

Dear Always Been In Charge: It’s not too late to make a deal where you both introduce a short fantasy to play out on Halloween night. And make it well clear that you each will have an opt-out safe-word that must be respected by the one of you “in charge” at the time. This way you can accommodate your new love’s fantasy without locking yourself into something you’re unsure about.