Local election news, at last!

Two local election stories in today's Star-Phoenix -- Tories commit to south downtown and Pankiw has worst attendance record
I got a chuckle out of them both, for different reasons.
First, the local conservative candidates may be "committed" to the south downtown, but that will mean diddly-squat in Ottawa if Harper cancels the program and they both know it, I think. Skelton says "I'd take (the request) to the leader, say, 'Look, we need this. Our city depends on it,' " while Yelich says "If it was something the city was definitely counting on, I'd definitely try to make sure they got their funding. It would be only fair . . . How can you make a promise? What I will promise is to do what I can, if this is in fact money that they are depending upon getting. Of course, I would work very, very hard." Well, I doubt that Atchinson can take that to the bank. As Goodale is quoted as saying "If the program's not available, the money's not available. "
Second, the Pankiw story about his abysmal attendance record in the commons. I'll bet it didn't help his attendance record when he was kicked out of the Conservative caucus either. I heard one of his radio ads today that said "polls show" he has 43 per cent of the vote in his riding. Well, that's about the percentage of the vote he got in the 2000 election so I suppose technically he could say that is true.
But as my brother notes, who lives in that riding, he has not seen ANY Pankiw signs in front of anyone's home, though they are sprinkled in the ditches. So hopefully that means something.