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Could the municipal political scandals uncovered by the Charbonneau Commission exert an influence on a main characteristic of municipal politics: the stability of its politicians? This paper intends to explore this issue during the 2013 Quebec elections. To verify adherence and/or deviation from established trends, we adopt a diachronic view that considers the two previous elections (2005 and 2009). Three factors are taken into consideration when interpreting voter trends: (1) voter participation and the competitiveness of the elections; (2) the role of municipal political parties; and (3) the incumbency advantage. We observed (1) more competitive elections; (2) a shrinking number of political parties but evidences of their general stabilization; (3) a slight renewal of municipal politicians due more to withdrawal from office than to electoral defeat. Finally, our analysis of electoral data also uncovered variable dynamics within Quebec communities of different sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although social media have become an increasing feature in Canadian electoral politics and have been given increased attention in research on Canadian political communication, the use of social media in municipal elections has yet to be thoroughly studied. This paper employs a quantitative analysis to assess the extent and effectiveness of social media use by candidates during the 2010 Niagara municipal elections. The types of content posted online, the level of interaction between candidates and voters, and the impact on electoral success are examined. An interaction scale developed for this study helps gauge the level of interactivity between candidates and voters. Although it is determined that social media were being used during the campaigns, the interaction between candidates and voters was low. There are differences in electoral success for incumbents and challengers and a positive correlation is identified between the success of challenger candidates and the number of Facebook "likes" and posts. Conversely, the use of social media has a negative correlation with success for incumbents. A number of directions for future research on social media in municipal campaigns are suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Voter turnout in Canada has declined in the last several décades and is now among the lowest in the western world. In this paper, we examine, through téléphoné surveys, the reasons why electors did not exercise their right to vote at the municipal level. When non-voters were asked why they did not vote, the most frequent reason was lack of information about candidates and the poor quality of the candidates. The person most likely to vote is a senior, upper income, born outside Canada, owning their own home, and politically and community involved. These results are not dissimilar to those in a recent survey of fédéral electors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]