Voters are largely undecided on election

With the federal election looming Monday, Fort Frances residents, as well as voters across the country, are preparing to cast their ballots.
But with less than a week to go, many remain undecided.
Ray Scott, 49, is still unsure which party he will support because he doesn’t know whether or not to believe what the candidates say.
“They seem to have made a lot of promises they have broken in the past. Can we trust them to come through with what they say?” he asked.
Scott, like many others, also feels overwhelmed by the amount of media coverage he’s been seeing daily during the campaign, which began May 23.
“Oh God, not the election again—I’m so sick of the election,” agreed Debbie Alexander. “I’m undecided at this point. It’s about ‘Who are you going to vote for who will do the least damage.’”
Norman Field, 57, who’s already decided who he’s voting for, hopes others will take this election more seriously, especially in this area.
“More people need to vote—a 50 percent voter turnout won’t cut it,” said Field. “I think our region seems to just get shafted by every level of government.
“Other than philosophies, they [the parties] are all pretty much the same anyways, so I stick with the party I grew up with,” he added.
Some common complaints heard here have been feeling as though Canadians have not been given enough information from the candidates, not believing promises, and a lingering bitterness over the Liberal sponsorship scandal.
But though cynicism often has appeared rampant during the campaign, it may—at least—be spurring those who have not voted in the past to do so in this election.
Inno Laur, 30, who said he’s still undecided, does not usually vote. But this weekend, he plans on doing some research of his own—scouring newspapers and the Internet to see which party best reflects his views.
He is doing this in an attempt to gain an unbiased knowledge of what the parties stand for—something he feels he has not had enough of, despite the extensive media coverage.
“Absolutely [I am] electioned-out,” said Laur. “Between Canadian and U.S. coverage—just bombarded by the media. I think we need good information and we don’t always get that from the media.”
Cliff Pidlubny, 26, said that between the municipal, provincial, and now federal election since last fall, the amount of media coverage has, to a degree, affected how much election coverage he’s been paying attention to.
“I’ve tried watching the debates and it’s just turning into an American election where they’re slamming each other instead of telling us what they are going to do,” he charged.
Nevertheless, he believes it’s very important to vote, so after he researches the parties this weekend to help him decide, he will be at the polls Monday.
First-time voters can register at the Elections Canada office at 517 Mowat Ave.
(Fort Frances Times)