Cambridge high school students share what's on their minds ahead of Ontario election in June
CBC
For Maya Darcy, the environment is among her top issues as she contemplates who she will vote for in the upcoming Ontario election.
"I don't want the sun to burn the Earth," the recently turned 18-year-old student from St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School in Cambridge said.
"Definitely environment, education, growing up, like for my kids — even when I'm older, things happening now are going to affect my kids and my grandkids."
CBC Kitchener-Waterloo recently visited the Grade 12 Challenges and Change in Society class at St. Benedict's that's taught by Cindy Penner.
Students were asked about their top concerns before the June 2 election. Not all students chose to speak to CBC K-W, but those who did shared their top issues and talked about how they get their news.
Candice Rodricks, 18, echoed Darcy's concerns about the environment, and added that issues facing Indigenous communities are a top priority for her.
"Our generation is inheriting this world and we're inheriting this society ,and so I think it's really important that even though we're not full adults yet, the decisions that our government is making right now [are] going to affect our future," she said.
"I think it's really important to make sure you have a voice."
Mariana Jesus agreed. She turns 18 in May and has already had spirited political conversations around the table with her family.
"I'm a first-generation Canadian and I notice that even my grandparents who don't live in their home country, they'll still stay informed about what's going on … what the political state is. And I want that for myself because I kind of grew up with that and I want to stay informed," she said.
Education was top of mind for some students, including 18-year-old Julia Renner. She said she and her classmates have felt the impact of remote learning, due to COVID-19, and noted there were teachers' strikes before the pandemic that disrupted her education as well.
"I'm a student now. I'm going to be a student for at least the next four years. I'm thinking I might go into teaching. So it's a big kind of aspect of my life."
She said she has a pretty good idea who she'll vote for in June.
"My political stance is very similar to that of my parents, really. So I've been pretty set on this in a while," Renner said.
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EDITOR'S NOTE: CBC News commissioned this public opinion research to be conducted immediately following the federal election and leading into the second anniversary of the United Conservative Party's provincial election win in May 2023.