Canadians immersed in the drama of the U.S. presidential election expect to gather in bars and living rooms to watch the voting unfold on Tuesday, but many say the usual buzz of watch parties will be tempered by anxiety about a particularly combative race.
Dustin Herberman of Vaughan, Ont., says he will follow the results with his parents, who lean more to the right of the political spectrum than he does. He’s gearing up for a night of nuanced chit-chat aimed at avoiding bickering over Democratic frontrunners Kamala Harris and Republican nominee Donald Trump.
“It’s just kind of everyone agrees — don’t push too many buttons while you’re voting,” he says of the House rules.
Herberman, 35, plans to keep an eye on CNN by occasionally switching to Canadian networks, but he expects there will be “a little bit of a fight for control of TV” with his father: “It’ll probably get flipped at least part of the time.” Time for Fox News.
For election observers who prefer a larger gathering, there are events planned across the country, many organized by regional political associations, non-partisan political organizations and diaspora groups.
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Meanwhile, pubs, bars and restaurants looking for a chance to stimulate traffic on a typically slower Tuesday will switch at least some of their screens from sports to news channels — especially in the border city of Windsor, Ont., where one city councilor was hoping to “talk The city” will drive the business.
“This year is more attractive than any I can remember in the 30 years I’ve lived in Windsor, there’s no doubt about it,” Rinaldo Agostino says of the US race.
Agostino says several bars, restaurants and a comedy club were among the businesses planning events in downtown Windsor, where American news is inevitable due to the saturation of Detroit radio and television and cross-border traffic.
And in Toronto, VideoCabaret’s “Vox Pop ’24: The Elephant Rolls Over, An American Movement Watch Party” will double as a fundraiser for the theater’s upcoming 50th anniversary. The “evening of sarcasm, music and scintillating banter” promises performances, panel discussions, special videos, a buffet and a bar, say organizers Janet Burke and Anand Rajaram.
Most important of all, it will provide a safe space to address what is likely to be an inflammatory outcome, regardless of the outcome of the vote, Burke says.
“You look around and people are like, ‘I don’t know if I’m going to watch,’ ‘I’m going to hide under my bed,’ ‘I’m going to wake up the next day and see’ what’s going on,” says Burke, a founding member of the theater.
“So we invited people to come and rub their hands together. Let’s all join hands and see what happens.
“When the results come in, we will either slip or jump with great relief,” she says.
Like Agostino, political marketing expert Dave Bossier feels there has been “increased interest” and broader curiosity among Canadians compared to what was seen in the previous two U.S. elections.
Bossier, an associate professor at the University of Windsor, runs a political marketing course focused on predicting the fate of Harris and Trump, and says he will watch the results unfold with “the world” impartially.
But he can easily see how emotions can get the best of some observers.
“Support for both parties has become more polarized. So I can imagine people, if they’re doing a viewing party, want to be among the people who agree. It seems like people don’t have as much patience, or don’t have as much patience with people who support the other side.
Bossier says he will follow the TV news coverage with his wife and son, but he also plans to connect virtually with his brother in Montreal, his two daughters in Toronto and his students.
Rajaram says his event doesn’t pretend to lean toward Harris and shy away from harsh rhetoric that specifically targets marginalized groups.
“We say in the invitations, shamelessly: Don’t be alone on election night. But it goes further than that. It is: “You don’t need to be alone,” says Rajaram, associate technical director of VideoCabaret.
“There is a community here of people who are as invested in the world and their worldview as you are, and we want to be a hub where people feel safe and supported.”
& Edition 2024 The Canadian Press
