Close X
Sunday, November 24, 2024
ADVT 
National

Canadian election watchers to gather in bars, homes to watch polarizing U.S. vote

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 01 Nov, 2024 10:07 AM
  • Canadian election watchers to gather in bars, homes to watch polarizing U.S. vote

Canadians engrossed in the drama of the U.S. presidential election expect to gather in bars and living rooms to watch the votes roll in Tuesday, but many say the usual fanfare of watch parties will be muted by anxiety over the especially combative race.

Dustin Herberman of Vaughan, Ont., says he’ll follow the results with his parents, who lean more to the right of the political spectrum than he does. He’s steeling himself for a night of delicate chit-chat meant to avoid squabbles over polarizing candidates Kamala Harris for the Democrats and Republican candidate Donald Trump.

“Pretty much it's just kind of agreed upon by everyone — you don't push too many buttons during the vote,” he says of the house rules.

The 35-year-old Herberman plans to monitor CNN with occasional flips to Canadian networks but expects there will be “a little bit of a fight for control of the TV” with his dad: “It's probably going to be flipped at least part of the time to Fox News.” 

For poll watchers who prefer a bigger gathering, there are events planned across the country, many of them organized by provincial political associations, non-partisan policy organizations and expat groups.

Meanwhile, pubs, bars and eateries eyeing a chance to spur traffic on a typically slower Tuesday will turn at least some of their screens from sports to the news channels – especially in the border city of Windsor, Ont., where one city councillor hoped “the talk of the town” will drive business.

“This year is more captivating than any year that I could possibly remember since the 30 years I've lived in Windsor, no question about it,” Renaldo Agostino says of the U.S. race.

Agostino says several bars, eateries and a comedy club were among the businesses planning events in downtown Windsor, where U.S. news is inescapable due to the saturation of Detroit radio, TV and cross-border traffic.

Over in Toronto, VideoCabaret’s “Vox Pop '24: The Elephant Rolls Over, An American Election Watch Party” will double as a fundraiser for the theatre’s upcoming 50th anniversary. The “evening of satire, music and scintillating banter,” promises performances, panel discussion, special videos, and a themed buffet and bar, say organizers Janet Burke and Anand Rajaram.

Most of all, it will offer a safe space to process what will likely be an inflammatory outcome, no matter the vote result, says Burke.

“You look around and folks were saying, ‘I don't know if I'm going to watch,’ ‘I'm going to hide under my bed,’ ‘I'm going to just wake up the next day and see what happens,’” says Burke, founding member of the theatre.

“So we've invited people to come and wring their hands together. Let's all just join hands and see what happens.”

And when the results come in, “we'll slink off or we'll jump up in great relief,” she says. 

Like Agostino, political marketing expert Dave Bussiere senses "a heightened interest" and broader curiosity among Canadians than what was seen in the previous two U.S. elections.

Bussiere, an associate professor at the University of Windsor, runs a political marketing course focused on predicting the fates of Harris and Trump and says he'll be watching the results roll in with the neutrality of "a scientist."

But he can easily see how emotions can get the best of some observers.

"The support for each of the two parties has become more polar. So I could picture people, if they're doing a watch party, to want to be amongst people who agree. People seem to not have as much patience, or don't have much patience with people who support the other party."

Bussiere says he'll tune into TV news coverage with his wife and son, but also plans to connect virtually with his brother in Montreal, two daughters in Toronto and his students.

Canadian prime time coverage Tuesday is set to include live reports on CBC from chief correspondent Adrienne Arsenault and senior Washington correspondent Paul Hunter; a panel of experts on CTV News Channel led throughout the evening by chief political correspondent Vassy Kapelos, while “CTV National News with Omar Sachedina” will be on location in Washington, D.C.

Global News’ Dawna Friesen and correspondents are set to host a national live stream available on GlobalNews.ca, YouTube, the Global TV App, Pluto TV and Prime.

Rajaram says his event makes no pretence of leaning towards Harris and away from harsh rhetoric that has especially targeted marginalized groups.

"We're saying in the invites, cheekily: Don't be alone on election night. But it goes far beyond that. It's: ‘You don't need to be alone,’ period, says Rajaram, associate artistic director of VideoCabaret.

“There's a community of people here who are as invested in the world and that worldview as you are, and we want to be a hub for people to feel safe and feel supported."

MORE National ARTICLES

Woman stabbed outside Whalley home

Woman stabbed outside Whalley home
Surrey R-C-M-P say they're looking for three young female suspects after a woman was stabbed outside a home in Whalley. Police say the woman didn't know the suspects, who are all believed to be between the ages of 15 and 20.

Woman stabbed outside Whalley home

Sikh groups calls for Indian consulates to be shut down in Vancouver, Toronto

Sikh groups calls for Indian consulates to be shut down in Vancouver, Toronto
Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.

Sikh groups calls for Indian consulates to be shut down in Vancouver, Toronto

Child dead after falling from 19th floor window in Winnipeg, police say

Child dead after falling from 19th floor window in Winnipeg, police say
Police in Winnipeg say a child has died after falling from a window on the 19th floor of a building. It happened Monday in the city's downtown. The child was taken to hospital and pronounced dead.

Child dead after falling from 19th floor window in Winnipeg, police say

Jump in home sales in September

Jump in home sales in September
The Canadian Real Estate Association says home sales climbed 1.9 per cent on a month-over-month basis in September, reaching their highest level since July 2023. The national increase was led by Greater Vancouver and Victoria, as well as the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton-Burlington, Montreal and Quebec City. 

Jump in home sales in September

Harpreet Singh gets 10 years in tripple stabbing

Harpreet Singh gets 10 years in tripple stabbing
Harpreet Singh has been sentenced to 10 years in prison -- minus the six-years in credit for time already served in custody -- for manslaughter and two counts of aggravated assault following the knife attack at a Surrey townhouse.

Harpreet Singh gets 10 years in tripple stabbing

Eby makes late pitch to people who have never voted New Democrat in B.C

Eby makes late pitch to people who have never voted New Democrat in B.C
Eby says there hasn't been an election as significant "for a generation," on the day the rival B.C. Conservative Party is poised to release its costed platform and just four days before election day on Saturday. Elections BC says about 597,000 people have already voted in four days of advance polling.

Eby makes late pitch to people who have never voted New Democrat in B.C