A very local affair

This is certainly not new; with their comfortable tour buses and crammed itineraries organized with precision timing, the party leaders are naturally the most attractive candidates for journalists to follow around the province. The catered lunches, the music, the lights, the balloons—it makes for great sound bites and images. You pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV and there they are—Jean Charest, André Boisclair and Mario Dumont. Their words are carefully chosen and every move they make is closely scrutinized by the media. After all, one of these gentlemen will be our next premier.

But what about the much lesser-known candidates—the hundreds of other party members going door-to-door in the frigid weather, negotiating icy sidewalks in every suburb and township in Quebec, all in an effort to win a seat in the National Assembly.

But who is following them around, reporting on their visits to arenas, malls and metro stations?

Whether they represent a massive political machine or a ‘fringe’ party with a joke platform—all candidates in an election deserve coverage, if only to ensure that the public has the opportunity to make an informed decision when they disappear behind the big cardboard screen.

Of course, with the TV cameras following the big tour buses, it is important that community newspapers take up the slack and let readers know who is running in their riding, what issues they are addressing and what political values they are promoting.

With that in mind, the Examiner will not only be publishing an article on each candidate who tosses their chapeau into the Westmount-St. Louis riding, but next Wednesday, March 14, we are once again co-organizing with the Westmount Municipal Association the main event in this riding’s campaign—the Meet the Candidates evening at Victoria Hall. All local candidates will be invited to share their views and answer questions from potential voters.

Neither Mr. Charest, Mr. Boisclair nor Mr. Dumont are likely to be there. Instead, the local voices will be heard from—giving you, the elector, a chance to determine exactly who deserves your vote on March 26.