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The Observer | Saturday, October 11, 2008
New Elmira business appeals to owner’s esthetic...................................... »15 Kings bring in new netminder
»20 VOLUME 13, ISSUE 41
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2008
www.ObserverXtra.com
PRICELESS
» CountDoWn to eleCtion DAY
Kitchener-conestoga too close to call STEVE KANNON Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. When the polls close and the counting’s done Tuesday night, we can expect to be back where we started when the writ was dropped last month: a Conservative minority government. Projections made Thursday by Wilfrid Laurier political scientist Barry Kay see the Conservatives capturing 138 seats on Oct. 14, up from the 124 they won in the last election but still short of the 155 needed to win a majority. But even those numbers could change, as the Tory fortunes continue to sink this week. “The world’s changed in the last three days. There’s been a swing to the Liberals from the Conservatives. That’s all happened since the
debates, since the weekend,” he said. Quebeckers began moving away from the Conservatives a couple of weeks ago, but the recent shift has been most dramatic in Ontario. Where the Laurier Institute for the Study of Public Opinion and Policy had been projecting a Tory win here in Kitchener-Conestoga, the race is now “too close to call,” said Kay. “Kitchener-Conestoga is probably the least safe of the Conservative seats in the area.” While Ontario and Quebec are seeing some swings, the polling results show little change elsewhere in the country. Stephen Harper’s government, looking at a possible majority when the election was called, now appears headed for another minority, albeit slightly enlarged. See RIDING »07
photo | joni miltenburg
Poll numbers show another minority government for Harper; predict tough battle for local seat
MaKING THE POINT the four candidates running in Kitchener-Conestoga – jamie Kropf, rod mcneil, harold Albrecht and orlando Da Silva – took part in a debate held at eDSS oct. 7. the debate was organized by the Student Vote committee.
Candidates make their pitch to high school students EDSS hears from Kitchener-Conestoga hopefuls looking for youth segment prior to holding Student Vote JONI MILTENBURG As the election race nears the finish line, the candidates running in Kitchener-Conestoga took time away from knocking on doors to appeal to a non-voting
crowd. The four candidates took part in a debate at Elmira District Secondary School on Oct. 7, convened by the organizers of Student Vote. The candidates told the crowd gathered in the EDSS cafeteria that the
election affects them even if they can’t vote. “This is going determine the direction we’re going in for the next four years,” said NDP candidate Rod McNeil. “What we want to do is make sure each one of you has a decent future – clean
air, clean water to drink, a home you can afford, a decent job with a decent wage, not being crippled with student debt.” Incumbent Harold Albrecht thanked the students for electing him in the last Student Vote election.
“I know that the students of EDSS take elections seriously and I know they make intelligent, well-considered decisions. I know this because in the last election here at EDSS you elected me as the MP for this riding.”
When asked about the most important issue of the election, all four candidates agreed the economy has eclipsed all others. Green party candidate Jamie Kropf told the students that economic
See CANDIDATES »07