The 2019 provincial election in Newfoundland and Labrador provides an opportunity for The Telegram to try new ways to engage our readers and help them make informed decisions on the leadership of Newfoundland and Labrador.
The Telegram wants to hear from the public to help inform our election coverage in the coming weeks.
One of the projects The Telegram is embarking on is a candidate survey. Adapting the survey used by Happy City St. John’s for 2017 municipal election coverage, The Telegram will create a survey to be completed by every candidate for the coming election.
While the Happy City survey will serve as a guiding document, the public will have a say in what issues are explored in the survey.
Survey consultation
During the week of April 15- 19, readers will have their chance to give their views on what issues are most important to them. Readers can submit questions to: [email protected], with a deadline of 5 p.m. on April 19.
During the following week, The Telegram will review all submissions and use them to inform the candidate survey. While The Telegram reserves the right to maintain editorial control over the survey, public feedback will guide every step of the survey.
The survey will be released publicly and sent to each candidate.
As responses to the survey come in, results will be posted www.thetelegram.com as premium content for subscribers. As soon as every candidate in a district has responded, their answers will be published in the print edition of the paper.
The survey will complement robust coverage of the 2019 Newfoundland and Labrador general election by the entire SaltWire Network team in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Examples
Each survey will contain basic questions to ensure the public knows the most effective means to communicate with each candidate (name, contact information, party affiliation, etc.). These questions will not count in the survey submitted to each candidate.
Questions could range from something broad (“What do you think is the single biggest issue facing the province?”) to more specific (“What is your stance on a plastic bag ban?”). There are no bad questions and The Telegram encourages all readers to take part.
Questions about the project and suggestions on how to make it better are encouraged. Email [email protected] to discuss.
Now is the time to have your say and help ensure an informed discussion of politics in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Twitter: DavidMaherNL
