Election season is a fast-paced affair, both for candidates and the reporters trying to cover the campaigns.
We heard from candidates over the weekend who were unhappy with our analysis of campaign pledges to move the county administration centre to the Wellington Place site at Aboyne.
The point of discussion, which could have been better presented on our part, was that the mail-in ballot does not lend itself to reacting to promises made part way through the campaign. Ballots have already started to be returned, and for people not onside with more bricks and mortar capital spending this proposed project came out of the blue. While we don’t like the idea of moving the administration centre, we dislike the mail-in vote even more.
Down in Puslinch, where voters actually get a chance to vote in person and have the entire campaign period to make up their mind, the race heated up recently at the Puslinch Community Centre. It would be an understatement to say the mayoral candidates aren’t too chummy, but we’ll see what the voters have to say. Like most communities there are two types of math being employed there – incumbent math and opponent math.
On the subject of math, we have seen enough election cycles to have witnessed the old adage that figures lie and liars figure. This isn’t to say during elections we are faced with a choice between liars, but it does make it hard for voters to decipher percentages, dollar amounts spent and so on. The fact is, costs are always rising, despite the math employed and claims made.
After a tip from a reader we reviewed the timing of the implementation of the benefits, pay increase and pension plan for county councillors. Rather than occurring during the term of the 2004 council, the bylaw was passed at the first meeting of the 2007 council (the 2004 council was only a three-year term rather than the present four-year cycle). Current Warden Chris White voted on the bylaw, as a newly-installed county councillor, not his predecessor as stated in last week’s editorial.
The addendum to that conversation was the expenses associated with White over the past term. While these items are part of the job there is a message here moving forward. Other communities have witnessed officials expensing items that are dubious. Perhaps an overdue pledge this election is for expenses to be made far more readily available to the public. Website postings would take the edge off of this concern.
We are two short weeks away from election day. Stay tuned.
