BY NOREEN FAGAN – It is countdown time, with only 13 days left before Election Day. With the clock ticking, both sides — voters and political parties — have donned their boxing gloves and climbed into the ring.
Political parties are continuing to air negative ads and some are stooping to smear campaigns. On Tuesday the Liberal Party was accused of attacking the integrity of Françoise Boivin, the NDP candidate for the western Quebec riding of Gatineau.
The Montreal Newspaper Le Devoir wrote that Boivin allegedly hired her same-sex partner when she was a Liberal representative for Gatineau from 2004 to 2006, a breach of parliamentary rules. The paper went on to say that Boivin was pushed out of the Liberal Party — but Boivin says she left for philosophical reasons.
NDP Leader Jack Layton showed his support for Boivin by calling the allegations unacceptable. Although Boivin came out fighting, she ended up the winner; she’s had more media attention in one day than she’s had over the past two weeks.
While the parties continue to fight with one another, Canadians — from Rick Mercer to Ottawa grad students — are doing their bit to get people focused and ready to vote.
Mercer’s call for youth to do the unexpected resulted in “vote mobs” storming campuses. With the enthusiasm that only youth can muster, they dance, parade and carry posters urging youth to vote in the upcoming elections.
Others, like some rocking graduate students in Ottawa, have taken to videotaping “breakup messages” to Stephen Harper.
Rock on sisters!
Bloggers have been blogging all kinds of things — from personal anecdotes to political strategies or, simply, discussions of the best campaign posters so far.
Here’s my favourite.
Xtra reporters have also been keeping a close eye on things, tracking the tactics of the ones we want back and keeping a daily update on the campaign.
Why you can trust Xtra
