Could a young mayor lead Mississauga or Brampton?

Two candidates, two mayoral races, but one thing in common, both are hoping that their campaigns get more youth engaged into municipal politics. You can get out there and you can make a difference, so I'm hoping that my campaign doesn't just get more youth out to vote, but it gets them more involved. My favourite sentence this entire election was, we never voted in our life, but we'll vote for you, because they know that I'm one of them. They are both the youngest candidates in their respective races. Amjad is 26, Sandeep is 32. They have no political backgrounds, yet they are going for the top jobs in their respective cities. I'm on the ground in the streets and I can hear the effects that these policies have had on these individuals and they're not being heard and they're being left behind. At the end of the day, elected officials are voted in by you. They are paid for by you. They should have a say in this. so what inspired them to run people i haven't had representation at the youth level so i'm trying to be that representative for them and i've been honest about my struggles i'm not going to be eligible for the house i live with my parents and grandparents in my house my wages they're not going any higher it came down to the necessity and also my identity there was a necessity when i spoke to people and i saw how many people are being neglected uh being under this establishment and then I realized that I have a lot of skills that would allow me to excel in this campaign. I've come across a lot of the a lot of the lobbyists in this election and it kind of reinforced the reason as to why I'm running. No one cares about the average resident anymore. Both are treating their lack of experience and lack of name recognition as benefits. What has been good for me is we started early because we knew the name recognition is an issue and the experience is going to be a hump. So I'm very aware of what's going on. I know exactly how a city operates. I know exactly how a budget runs and I actually did marketing for some of the largest businesses in Mississauga So I understand exactly what it means to you know set promises and fulfill them But running for mayor is a tall task So why didn't the both of them consider running for trustee or running for councillor instead? I felt like if we truly want change here in Brampton there needs a change at the leadership role It was an election like no other and it was the only opportunity that presented itself in such manner Someone's got to do it. That's why I decided to run Sandeep and Amjad are taking their campaigns seriously. They are putting money into advertising. Hi Bramptonians, advanced voting is still open. They're posting regularly on social media. And they are making time to go out to the community and meet with constituents. So the more we get into these larger community group meetings and these individual meetings, the more they start welcoming me as a mayor and taking my candidacy more seriously. And we've gotten votes just by engaging and having dialogue with people. people. This campaign was beyond draining, like I said it was financially draining, it was draining in every capacity. Someone said a really good point to me, he goes, Amjad, if you choose to give up this election you would be disappointing people like myself, you would be disappointing me, the average resident that has believed in you because they had no other option. So when I heard that and I started to hear a little too often that I'm like, you know what, if there is no alternative to Amjad Janani, then Amjad Janani will continue all the way. Their passion for youth engagement definitely brings up a unique challenge. Elections Canada says voter turnout for individuals between the ages of 18 to 24 has consistently been low since 2004. So can a young person running for office actually inspire a young person to vote? Having our young emerging leaders talk to their own peers has been very effective because they can talk to them and they understand the perspectives that they're coming from. they've lived a lot of the same experiences maybe slightly different but they're all they're all growing up at a time that feels particularly difficult in the region and so I think that that that peer-to-peer conversation is really important. You can get out there and you can make a difference so I'm hoping that my campaign doesn't just get more youth out to vote but it gets them more involved. That is one of the main reasons that I decided to run it's to challenge that narrative a little bit that look it's yes it's not nice it's not it doesn't look good but it doesn't look good because of these factors but also because we are abstaining i will spend the next few years educating people and using my platform and leveraging everything that i've learned to make people aware of what's going on and how it works to put into perspective with both Sandeep and Amjad are up against there's 14 official candidates running in Mississauga with four candidates polling consistently while there's 12 candidates running in Brampton with no real consensus around a bonafide contender to the current incumbent so one has to wonder if they are both unsuccessful will this be the end of their political aspirations or the beginning Brampton will see us more I work in the community already so we are advocating for better things around harm reduction and then with the hockey side more accessible recreation for our youth here in Brampton and so yes for sure you'll see me in four years i'm a person that's gonna wake come to you. If I am unable to win this election, then I most certainly will be able to win the next one. I got a lot of time to go. A reminder that election day is Monday, October 26th. Nav Nanwa, CBC News, Peel.