By-election timing

[Parrothead]

Understandably, a ruling party will try to time an election, that is beneficial to them. The provincial Liberals, have been plagued by scandal, the former leader, first stepped down as leader of the party, saying he would remain an MPP until the next provincial election. He stepped down as MPP last month. Four other liberal MPPs have also resigned or stepped down.

The current liberal leader/premier called the 5 by-elections yesterday. The problem is, some look at the timing as dubious. The byelections have been called for Thursday Aug. 1/13. It happens to be right before a long weekend. Many workplaces have shutdowns at the end of July, with workers returning after that long weekend. The Liberals claim, "it's Summer, people will better pay attention to issues". Opposition parties are crying foul saying: "It's right before a long weekend, people will be heading out or already be on vacation. It's a form of voter suppression".

IIRC, average voter turn-out for a by-election is around 25 - 30%. I have to wonder, if the timing of these elections will result in an even lower turnout. In the end, no matter the results, we will still have a minority (hung) provincial legislature.

Story: http://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2013/07/03/ontario_byelections_opposition_parties_blast_wynne_for_timing_of_vote.html

[The Supreme Canuck]

And my reaction is a resounding "meh." It isn't voter suppression - people can choose to vote or not. And I don't see how it could possibly skew the results - Liberals take the long weekend off just as much as Tories or Dippers. So... meh. Scandal in a teapot.