Blazingcatfur

With an election underway, parties are officially on the hunt for the votes of Canadians, criss-crossing the country and campaigning right up to Sept. 20. And to fund all that travel, advertising and election gear, parties will be shelling out a lot of money.

But political parties and candidates will not be the only groups spending big in the election campaign. “Third parties” are also in the mix and will be hoping to shape the political conversation, get their issue prioritized and build up or tear down other political actors.

This is my seventh federal election in B.C. as a pollster for Ipsos.

Every election since my first in 2004, people have asked me if this is the one where B.C. is going to make a difference. It used to be that a winner was often declared before British Columbians even turned on their televisions to see the results come in. Voting times by region are more uniform these days, but people still want to know if a shift in B.C. will make a difference to the final outcome.

Tories tell candidate who raised concern over ‘climate lockdown’ to take down videos

The Conservative Party told Global News on Sunday that Cheryl Gallant was told to take down videos from her YouTube channel and that she has to fully support all parts of the party’s platform or else she will no longer be a Conservative candidate.

The videos in question included one in which Gallant, who is up for re-election in the Ottawa Valley riding of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, warned constituents that the Liberals are preparing for a “climate lockdown.”

O’Toole clearly needs more sphincter relaxant.