OUR CRATER DIGITAL TOWN HALL MUNICIPAL ELECTION 2018

Every four years Ontarians have the privilege of exercising their democratic right by casting their vote for the leader of their municipality. It’s no different in Sudbury where you can see candidate signs popping up across all areas of town. This election is especially significant in our area as it comes at a time where we find ourselves, as a City, at the crux of making some big decisions that will vastly affect the future. There are several big budget projects in the works, some ready to break ground, others remaining a source of conflict within council. It is important to make sure that you, yes YOU, get your butt to your nearest polling station October 22nd and cast your ballot for the candidate who most represents your values!

Of course showing up to vote is only half the battle, the other half is making sure you’re informed. It can be tough to follow all the information coming out as the candidates ramp up their campaigns and debates amass. We want to help young Sudburians educate themselves and be able to make an informed vote on October 22nd. In the 2015 general election 57% of Canadians between the ages of 25-34 turned out for the vote which up from 45% in 2011 (elections.ca) but still flagging after the older generations. Keep in mind however that these statistics are based on a federal election, when looking at figures for the last municipal election in 2014 overall voter turn out is a staggering 43% (www.amo.on.ca). The millennial vote is often under represented and in an effort to engage our readers we sent all 11 of Sudbury’s Mayoral Candidates a 10 item questionnaire asking for their responses to questions that were developed by Our Crater contributors (special thanks to Amanda Kingsley-Malo of PoliticsNow for her guidance). We wanted the questions to address some of the concerns young Sudburians have about the future. As part of the experiment we also wanted to see which candidates were willing to participate in this ‘digital town hall’ and take the opportunity to directly address our readers. In order to remain unbiased in this process all candidates were emailed and given the same deadline for their responses. In the end 5 of 11 candidates responded, giving us valuable insight into the platforms of the potential next leader of our community. The candidates are as follows:

Brian Bigger

Cody Cacciotti – no response

Troy Crowder – no response

Bill Crumplin

Jeff Huska

Ron Leclair – no response

Dan Melanson

Patricia Mills

Rodney Newton – no response

David Popescu – no email information provided by candidate

Bill Sanders – no response

Your voice and your vote count! Don’t let your ballot go unaccounted for and make sure you have your say on who should be the next Mayor of Sudbury. October 22^nd is the date for the vote, if you’re not sure where your nearest polling station is find out here. See you at the polls!

Other resources to check out:
Young People Who Give a Sh!t Candidate Questionnaire

Darren MacDonald, Sudbury.com City Hall reporter – Twitter

CBC Sudbury Northeastern Ontario Votes 2018 – Newsfeed

Sudbury.com Municipal Election – Newsfeed

City of Greater Sudbury – Voter information