In battleground Kanata–Carleton riding, voters still struggling with their choices

In perhaps the only Ottawa riding where the election outcome is too close to call, some constituents are still looking for something that will guide their vote. But with less than two weeks before election day, they say that moment of clarity has yet to arrive.

At a Tuesday night all-candidates debate in Kanata—Carleton, the Citizen spoke to more than a dozen constituents before, during and after the event. While the debate was held in Carp, voters turned out from urban and rural parts of the riding. Most said they were looking for clarity.

“This election’s been very different. It’s a bit messy, in my opinion. It’s a bit difficult to follow,” said Kelly, a Carp resident. She and her husband, Tristan, are small-business owners and asked that their last names not be used.

Both said they lean Conservative, but feel parties today aren’t as differentiated on policy as they used to be. “People are literally throwing money at everything, trying to attract voters,” Tristan said. “I’m not really getting this election. And I’m really, really afraid that we’re going to have extraordinarily low voter turnout because I don’t think they’re mobilizing the voters.”

“That’s why we came out,” Kelly said. “If we’re not getting inspired at all by the federal leaders, let’s see if we can get inspired by our local candidates.”

According to polling project 338Canada, Kanata—Carleton is the only one of eight Ottawa ridings classified as a “toss-up” for most of the election campaign. The remainder are safe or likely Liberal seats or, in the case of the Carleton riding, likely Conservative.

Kanata—Carleton is an affluent suburban riding, comprising parts of Kanata and stretching westward into rural country. 338Canada ranks its median household income as the 11th-highest nationwide, and it houses a significant population of public servants and professionals.

In 2015, the election of Liberal Karen McCrimmon in Kanata— Carleton came as a surprise to many. The riding was new to the electoral map at that time, and the old districts from which it was created — Carleton—Mississippi Mills and Nepean—Carleton — had been Conservative territory.

McCrimmon, a Canadian Armed Forces veteran, won the seat with 51 per cent of the vote. The runner-up, a Conservative, took 39 per cent. This time, the polls are showing that McCrimmon’s closest competitor is again a Tory.

Conservative candidate Justina McCaffrey is a familiar name in Ottawa after years as a popular wedding-dress designer.

Last month, a small scandal further increased her profile as the Liberals unearthed a years-old video showing McCaffrey palling around with alt-right personality Faith Goldy.

Her campaign has been an active one, with regular media releases attacking the Liberals and trumpeting Conservative platform promises. She also scored a riding visit from Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer, who praised her campaign for knocking on more doors than any other that week.

But her failure to appear at two recent riding debates hasn’t won McCaffrey any favour, at least among the undecided voters the Citizen spoke with after Tuesday’s event. “Given that the PC candidate didn’t come tonight … that’s off the table for me,” Helen Bekolay said.

Allan Joyner, a director of the Huntley Community Association and the moderator of Tuesday’s debate, said he felt as if voters in the riding were hungering for a political vision they could unite behind, and right now they weren’t getting it.

“There’s things that make you worry about either of the big parties,” Joyner said. “There just isn’t a clear choice this time.” tblewett@postmedia.com