On Friday April 22^nd about 50 youth gathered in the Halifax Commons to host a ‘vote mob’ to show their dedication to getting out the youth vote. People gathered with flags, face paint, and signs describing issues they are concerned about to show their dedication to democratic participation. After filming a short video that will be available soon, participants made their way over to Halifax’s returning office to cast their ballots.

The vote mob phenomenon was started at Guelph University by a group of students who claimed to be inspired by Rick Mercer’s rant about youth voter turnout. Since then, vote mobs have been popping up from coast to coast encouraging students and young people to hit the polls for the 41^st general election. Youth voter turnout has historically been very low; only 25% of eligible voters aged 18-30 actually cast a ballot in the 40^th general election.  “We hosted this vote mob in Halifax to show that youth across the country are involved in this election,” said co-organizer Danielle Nelson. “We need to be engaged in our democracy if we want it to work for us.” Will Horne, a vote mob participant, said, "I think the vote mob did an excellent job at engaging young people in the democratic process, and the event was full of passion and excitement. It also helped students to realize they can vote despite being away from home - and that it's important to do so.”

The results of the last general election were indeed a special case in Canadian history. Voter turnout hit an all time low at 62%, and the Harper Government was voted in with only 36% of the popular vote. This means that the Harper Government held support from only 21% of eligible voters. This government was felled by a vote of non-confidence on March 26^th 2011 by the opposition parties, and was held in contempt of parliament, an event that is unprecedented in Canadian history. “I think it is important that everybody, not just youth, get out and vote in this election. There are more people who didn’t vote at all than people who voted for the Harper Conservatives in 2008. That is not true democratic representation,” said participant Caitlin Pierchzalski. “We all need to do our part to restore democracy in this country, and that can all start with casting a ballot.”