Comment 31 – comments and feedback

Emmanuel Pinto

My name is Emmanuel Pinto, I am a resident of Asphodel-Norwood Township (XXXXXX), currently in the electoral district of Northumberland-Peterborough South and under the proposed electoral redistribution I would remain in the riding now called "Northumberland."

I disagree with the proposal to place Asphodel-Norwood in a electoral district with Northumberland for another ten years.

Myself and most of my neighbours identify with, and conduct our business in Peterborough. We work, shop, have appointments, and follow the news in Peterborough. There may be a few individuals, but I don't know many people who commute to Campbellford, Cobourg, or Port Hope for these things.

Another issue is that of candidate information. I have worked in the last two federal elections at our community centre and both times, I have had multiple voters remark to me that they did not know anyone on the ballot. They often told me that they followed the news, debates, and campaign in Peterborough and were baffled as to why we were voting for candidates who lived all the way on the other side of Northumberland County. In the 2021 Federal Election, I struggled to find a candidate's debate online for my riding while finding almost a dozen for the nearby Peterborough-Kawartha riding.

I would also like to express my dissatisfaction with the riding name. I definitely prefer short names, but in this case, the residents of Asphodel-Norwood and Cavan Monaghan in the Northumberland Riding are reduced to secondary status. Why not keep the name Northumberland-Peterborough South?

I do not want the voices of small communities like ours to be marginalized because we are on the fringes of the electoral district. We are not from Northumberland County, we are from Peterborough County.

Thank you for your consideration and I appreciate the ability to express my concerns to the committee in this fashion.

Emmanuel Pinto