Despite snowstorms, campaigning continued: A look at Week 3 in local ridings
Canadidate lists now finalized by Elections Ontario, voters go to the polls Feb. 27
Despite a midweek snowstorm, local campaigns continued to hum along, with candidates and their volunteer teams knocking on doors and attending events including debates and forums.
Two leaders were in Waterloo region again this past week: Green Leader Mike Schreiner was in Cambridge on Monday alongside local candidate Carla Johnson to highlight solutions to what he called to the "crisis of caring."
Schreiner, who is also running in Guelph, said his party would make sure everyone had a safe and affordable place to call home. That promise included increasing annual funding for women's shelters, transitional and supportive housing, and building 310,000 affordable homes.
On Tuesday, NDP Leader Marit Stiles was in Kitchener to introduce her party's plan for southwestern Ontario and the Niagara region.
Stiles highlighted four promises for this part of the province:
- Providing a recurring monthly grocery rebate.
- Rent control.
- Hiring more doctors and nurses and continue funding for the new hospital planned for Waterloo.
- Ensure schools are in a state of good repair.
Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford spent part of his week in Washington with Canada's other premiers and Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie spent time in Toronto, Barrie and northern Ontario.
All four leaders took part in a debate Friday on northern Ontario issues. You can read more about that here.
Candidates finalized
All candidates running in the Feb. 27 provincial election had to have their paperwork to Elections Ontario by 2 p.m. on Thursday. The lists are now finalized. The full list can be found in the link below.
Elections Ontario noted there are a total of 768 candidates and 20 parties are running in this election. In 2022, there were 900 candidates and 25 parties on the ballot.
This represents a 14.6 per cent decrease in the number of candidates and a 20 per cent decrease in the number of parties participating.
Voter voices
CBC K-W held a second voter panel where we heard top issues from local voters. Ron Garland of Stratford raised concerns about a lack of primary care and hospital beds in Perth-Wellington.
"Emergency rooms shut down on a regular basis," said Garland, adding "hospitals are struggling to keep their beds open."
Waterloo's Carol Moogk-Soulis said she's concerned about the supply of social housing and how more needs to be done to make sure people have a place to live.
"I remember having grown up here, so many social housing programs, projects," she said.
"We didn't have people living in tents. It makes me very sad to see that," she said. "When did we stop being concerned enough about people to look at the past, look at some of the solutions?"
Rodney Chan, also a Waterloo voter, says a key issue is public transportation and that it's essential to get people to health care, education, work and even grocery shopping.
"It's a key lifeline for people and it's just been starved of funding for the past few decades in this province," Chan said.
Reporter Cameron Mahler also took a look at CBC K-W's voter survey and found health care, housing and homelessness as well as affordability and education were among the top issues being raised by people who took the survey.
The survey results also showed about half of respondents weren't sure who they would vote for in this election.
As well, CBC K-W aired conversations with people who stopped by to speak with The Morning Edition's Craig Norris at Monigram Coffee Roasters in Cambridge.
Among the issues raised by people included the timing of the election, affordability, housing, basic income and voter turnout.
LISTEN | Voters share issues important to them during the Ontario election with CBC K-W in Galt:
LISTEN | CBC K-W hears from more voters during visit to Monigram Coffee Roasters in Galt:
Coming up
A second leaders debate will be held on Monday evening in Toronto. CBC News will also bring you that event live.
Locally, there are a few different debates:
- Sunday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Button Factory Arts Centre in Waterloo, there will be a panel discussion with Waterloo candidates about the role of arts and creative industries when it comes to building liveable cities.
- Tuesday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Grand River Collegiate in Kitchener, the Waterloo Region Assembly of Public School Councils is holding a debate that will focus on the future of public education, investing in school infrastructure and repairs and teacher and support staff shortages.
- Thursday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., a Kitchener-Conestoga debate will be held at the Wilmot Rod and Gun Club near New Hamburg. Organizers say it will focus on environmental policy and sustainability, housing affordability and development and social assistance and community well-being.
Also this week on CBC K-W's The Morning Edition, candidate panels will be held each morning between 7:40 a.m. and 8 a.m. Here's the schedule:
- Tuesday — Cambridge candidates.
- Wednesday — Kitchener Centre candidates.
- Thursday — Kitchener-Conestoga candidates.
- Friday — Kitchener South-Hespeler candidates.
The candidate panels will continue on Monday, Feb. 24 with Waterloo.
Advance voting later this week
Advance voting will take place later this week. People are also expected to start receiving voter cards this week.
Thursday, Friday and Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., advance voting locations will be open. People are asked to bring their identification with them.
People can also vote anytime at their local election office until Feb. 26.
Voting day is Feb. 27.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
