Ex-Manitobans now in U.S. eager to vote

WINNIPEG — Manitobans living in the U.S. and keen to vote in Canada’s election say it’s one of most consequential for their former home and native land.

“With the recent political rhetoric out there with the U.S. president kind of picking a fight with Canada, you know — calling it the 51st state — it’s really got me riled up to vote, to make my voice heard, to really take a stand and say, ‘No, we are a sovereign country, we will remain a sovereign country,’” said ex-Winnipegger Karen Rocznik, who moved to the States a decade ago.

The dual Canada-U.S. citizen living in Denver said she received her mail-in ballot Monday and is making sure her vote counts.

“I’m Canadian, first and foremost,” Rocznik said. “And I want to vote for somebody that is going to fight for us and is going to push back.”

The Canada Colorado Association member worked as a producer and reporter for CTV News in Winnipeg before heading south for personal reasons.

She and other transplanted Manitobans registered with Elections Canada say they received their ballot kits soon after the election was called.

“I was very surprised that the ballot had showed up before I could even confirm with Elections Canada that they had all the information,” said Rocznik, who received an earlier email asking if her address had changed.

So was former Oak Bank resident Whitney Berry, who lives in Grand Forks, N.D. She was surprised at the quick and seamless process. Not long after Elections Canada confirmed her U.S. address, she received a ballot with a postage-paid return envelope this week.

“I really didn’t have to do anything,” said the 50-year-old professor, who moved to the U.S. in 1997. “They assume that you want to vote.”

And Berry did.

She has concerns that U.S. President Donald Trump’s deep funding cuts to educational institutions will impact her and her husband, who also works at a university. They’re not planning to move to Canada any time soon, but it has crossed her mind.

Trump’s administration has cut tens of thousands of jobs from the federal civil service and started a trade war with Canada — and dozens of other countries — by imposing punishing tariffs on goods imported into the U.S.

“Right now, we have jobs, but I don’t know, we’re at universities, and they’re kind of being targeted. Who knows? It’s all very up in the air right now,” said Berry, who voted Liberal in her former federal riding because she wants Mark Carney to remain prime minister.

“Living in the U.S. right now, we’re in a very bad situation; all these changes are happening and all these cuts are happening,” she said. “I really do feel it’s important, and I feel privileged to be able to vote in both countries.”

In 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Canadians who’ve lived abroad for any length of time shouldn’t be denied the right to vote.

That was news to occupational therapist Rachelle Spencer Mikita, who moved from Winnipeg to Long Branch, N.J., more than 30 years ago and, until recently, thought she was ineligible to vote in Canadian elections.

A school friend who also lives in the U.S. sent her a link to Elections Canada information on how to vote from abroad. The dual citizen said she’s applying to receive a mail-in ballot.

“I think it’s important that I can do this, because I think there’s so much at stake,” Mikita told the Winnipeg Free Press. A recent visit with her parents in Calgary was important to gaining some perspective about the April 28 election, she said.

Her parents are voting for Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives, but Mikita said she believes Liberal Leader Carney is the best candidate to stand up to Trump, who is her biggest concern.

“You can’t be friends with (Trump). He only wants something from you. He’s like a mob boss,” she said. “I’m afraid that if the right person doesn’t get in, that they’re going to be like, ‘Oh, we’ll just work with you.’ There’s no working. You need to stay on top of Canada’s sovereignty at all possible costs.”

Garry Manchulenko said he has lived away from Canada so long, he can’t remember his last address — which Elections Canada requires before sending a ballot kit to a citizen abroad.

“I feel like a nomad,” said the former Winnipegger who lived in Ontario before moving to the U.S. more than 20 years ago, and is not an American citizen.

“I can’t vote here because I’m on a Green (Permanent Resident) Card, and right now I can’t vote at home,” said Manchulenko, who lives outside Denver and is still trying to find his last Canadian address.

“There’s a democracy itch that needs to be scratched,” said the Canada Colorado Association member who follows Canadian news online. “The only way you can change things is by voting.”

Trump’s repeated musings about Canada becoming the 51st state makes some Americans “chuckle and laugh about it,” he said.

But others — including Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, who declared March 15 “Canada Friendship Day” — are not amused, Manchulenko said.

“That’s not how we treat our best neighbours and allies,” he said.

» Winnipeg Free Press

Another transplanted Winnipegger, happily settled in San Diego with no plans to move back to Canada, said he jumped at the chance to cast a ballot.

“I think it is probably the most important election yet,” said Austin Grabish, a former CBC Manitoba reporter who moved to California two years ago to work at the ABC affiliate in San Diego.

“Canada is really fighting for its life and it’s really hard to see, being down here, because it’s like we’re suddenly in this war with our best friend,” Said Grabish, 30, who follows the news from Canada daily.

“I am very concerned about what’s going to happen with all these tariffs.

“All of our friends and family are there and we don’t want them to be laid off and lose their jobs and have their businesses impacted — that kind of ripple effect.”

Americans pay little attention to Canada, he said, but added interviews on U.S. TV with leaders from north of the border have created more interest in Trump’s tariffs and how they will impact daily life: “If we ship our wine from California to Canada and we get our car parts from Canada, how is that going to impact things?”

Grabish wouldn’t say who will get his vote but that it’s important to cast a ballot, particularly in this election.

“Hopefully things kind of calm down and Canada’s not still in this fight for its life … Whoever gets in is going to have to come up with a plan to respond to this,” he said. “I don’t even know how they do that, no matter what party you’re with, given the circumstances and how everything just changes down here day to day.”

» Winnipeg Free Press