With a Canadian federal election quickly approaching on the horizon, each national political party is being put under the microscope. Whether it’s about party policies, the state of the economy or climate change, not a single stone is being left unturned.
Except perhaps the “page not found” pages on their websites.
The 404 page is one we barely give a second thought to, except to say “Oops, I took a wrong turn.” and then move on in mere seconds. It’s an afterthought for most of us, but the political parties took the time to come up with unique, clever and sassy ideas for theirs.
Now even though I am a committed (insert your political affiliation here) like you, we’re going to put that aside and look at these pages together.
The Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservatives got on the “bashing Justin Trudeau” train early, putting out ads before the election campaign had even officially begun. They have been using the “Just Not Ready” mantra consistently, questioning whether young Justin has what it takes to run a country.
It is a clear low-blow towards Justin, but it’s a damn good one. If you’re going to take the time to be clever, might as well do it at an opponent’s expense. Props to the Conservatives on this one.
The New Democratic Party
The NDP decided to take a shot at the current Prime Minister. Along the same lines as the Conservatives, the NDP came up with a link (pun intended) between a broken link and a broken Conservative plan. Again, clever but ice-cold. I love it!
The Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada went with a 404 page to adhere to the younger audience, coming up with the most Canadian version of the well-known Fail Whale on the Twitter 404 page. Without taking any shots at other political parties, the Liberals were able to be clever at no one’s expense. Being able to include Canada Geese and a Moose on your page is always a bonus.
The Bloc Quebecois
The Bloc Quebecois did not have a 404 page, as any broken links simply went to the news page.
Personally, I find all of these pages great. Even if you think they might be cheap shots at one another, I would argue that these are attempts to at least get the younger, more internet-savvy voters to take even the slightest bit of interest in politics. If even one of these 404 pages made someone laugh or go “Oh snap!”, then they have accomplished a very difficult task; making politics interesting (note: this is something I’ve already written about).
Bonus Round: The Parti Quebecois Provincial Party
Translation: “This page in unfindable, like our signature on the Canadian Constitution.”
Oh snap.
ODD SOCKS AND RANDOM THOUGHTS 