Our 43rd provincial general election has brought with it a puzzling, if not concerning trend.

The trend involves prospective MLAs not attending all candidates' meetings.

It鈥檚 understandable people wanting to represent their riding will have very busy schedules, perhaps balancing campaigns with other priorities such as family and work. But with this election, a number of all-candidates meetings have taken place in Lower Mainland and Interior ridings where one or more candidates have been no-shows. And it鈥檚 not candidates of a particular party. For example, only Independent candidate Stephen Johnston took part in a recent forum organized by the Greater Westside Board of Trade and Peachland Chamber of Commerce for the riding of West 琉璃神社-Peachland.

To my knowledge, Salmon Arm-Shuswap鈥檚 five candidates have attended all local meetings to date, except the online forum hosted by the Shuswap Climate Action Society. Only NDP and Green candidates Sylvia Lindgren and Jed Wiebe took part in that one. Independent Greg McCune and Conservative David Williams had confirmed they would take part but then did not. Nor did Independent Sherry Roy.

Again, one should not make assumptions about individual candidates and their reasons for not attending a particular all-candidates forum. However, it's fair to say some people will view this as a flippant attitude to what is, for many, a rare opportunity to access and assess in person all of the voting options, to make a more informed decision at the ballot box.

I heard on the radio this morning one candidate refers to the election as a hiring process, through which candidates are attempting to impress upon their prospective employer, the voting public, why they should be hired. In that context, the candidate likened all-candidate meetings to part of a comprehensive interview process. Of course, this leads to the question, when a candidate opts out of an all-candidates meeting, what does that say about their desire for the job and their respect for the employer? 

Thankfully we're in a riding where the candidates, although busy, are also accessible. However, what you receive through a friendly, one-on-one conversation will likely lack the scope and breadth of what can be gained at an all-candidates meeting.