It happens every election – campaigns signs are destroyed or stolen. But recently, the signs for the Liberal candidate in the Burnaby South riding have been the focus of some particularly concentrated and bizarre destruction.
The eyes have been cut out of seven of Adam Pankratz’s large campaign signs, according to his father, John Pankratz.
John and family friends have been helping Adam by putting up signs at the homes and businesses of supporters, but it hasn’t been easy work, particularly over the past three weeks, according to John.
“It’s been a process,” he told the NOW. “We just had another one this morning – Royal Oak, south of Saunders. Somebody’s cut the eyes out there.”
In the same area, at Grange Street and Royal Oak Avenue, 30 smaller signs were slashed, according to John.
Other signs have been vandalized in a variety of ways, from the wires being removed to letters scribbled out with markers, he added.
In one instance, the signs John put up were vandalized thrice within a short time period, he said.
The signs were hung on a fence at a work site at Gilley Avenue and Kingsway, after John spoke to the owner, he said.
He went to pick up his wife, who was door knocking for Adam’s campaign, and took her back to show her the fence. Within 20 minutes, all the signs had been slashed, he said.
He taped them up and hung them up from inside the fence, and someone cut all the plastic ties, he added. Then he used wire, and thus far, the signs are still up.
The NOW has not received any reports of sign vandalism from other candidates in Burnaby, though there has been mention on Twitter of Liberal, NDP and Green campaign signs being vandalized around Mt. Seymour Parkway in North Vancouver, in the Burnaby North-Seymour riding.
If you notice campaign signs in the city that have been targeted by vandals, please email Jennifer Moreau with the information.
All Burnaby candidates confirmed
There are 17 days left until the 2015 Federal Election, and so it is surely time to get to know city candidates.
Elections Canada has released the list of all candidates who were confirmed by deadline this week.
In the Burnaby North-Seymour riding, the candidates are: NDP candidate Carol Baird Ellan; Liberal candidate Terry Beech; Independent candidate Helen Hee Soon Chang; Communist Party candidate Brent Jantzen; Conservative candidate Mike Little; Green Party candidate Lynne Quarmby; Marxist-Leninist Party candidate Brian Sproule; and Libertarian Party candidate Chris Tylor.
In the Burnaby South riding, the candidates are: Libertarian Party candidate Liz Jaluague; Liberal candidate Pankratz; Conservative candidate Grace Seear; NDP candidate Kennedy Stewart; and Green Party candidate Wyatt Tessari.
In the New Westminster-Burnaby riding, the candidates are: Libertarian Party candidate Rex Brocki; Conservative candidate Chloé Ellis; NDP candidate Peter Julian; Liberal candidate Sasha Ramnarine; Green Party candidate Kyle Routledge; and Marxist-Leninist Party candidate Joseph Theriault.
Meet the candidates with the BBOT
Now that all the candidates have been confirmed, it’s time to get to know them.
To that end, the Burnaby Board of Trade is holding an all candidates meet-and-greet event on Monday at the Firefighters Banquet Hall, 6515 Bonsor Ave.
The free meet-and-greet takes place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., and everyone is welcome to attend.
As of Tuesday, Sept. 29, 10 Burnaby candidates confirmed they would be attending, according to a press release from the BBOT.
For Burnaby South, Pankratz, Seear, Stewart and Tessari will be attending. For New Westminster-Burnaby, Ellis, Julian, Ramnarine and Routledge are attending. For Burnaby North-Seymour, Beech and Little have confirmed they’ll attend.
All-Candidates meeting next week
An all-candidates meeting is taking place at Harmony Court Estate, 7197 Canada Way, next Wednesday, Oct. 7 from 2:30 to 4 p.m.
The meeting is geared towards seniors’ issues such as seniors’ medical, seniors living in poverty and the renewal of the health accord, according to an email from the recreation coordinator for the care home.
Anyone from the community is welcome to attend.
New Westminster-Burnaby candidates Julian, Ramnarine and Routledge have confirmed they will attend, according to the email, while Ellis has declined.
Email election news to Jennifer.
