WITH a week left to cast votes in the local government election, candidates are anticipating foot traffic to increase at Bathurst's pre-poll venues this weekend.
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Candidates have continued to have a presence at pre-poll venues this week, despite the wet conditions.
They have found that people are still willing to come up and have a chat, wanting to be informed before casting their votes.
"People aren't getting harassed, we're not pushing how-to-votes in their faces, so the people who want to engage with us are actually taking the time to talk to us," Group B lead candidate, and current councillor, John Fry said.
Cr Fry said people have trickled into pre-poll all week, but he's expecting things to pick up over the weekend and into next week as the election day nears.
Nick Packham, the lead candidate for Group G, feels the same way.
"I personally think Saturday will be the biggest day and we will certainly have both booths manned if people want to talk about our vision for Bathurst," he said.
The consensus among candidates is that voters are seeking change in their representation on Bathurst Regional Council.
Cr Fry, Mr Packham and Group D candidates Ingrid Pearson and Diana Stewart all gave that feedback on Friday, and other candidates made similar comments to the Western Advocate on day one of pre-poll.
"[Pre-poll] started off a bit slow, but it is slowly picking up pace and what we are finding is there are a number of people who are thinking that a renewed council may be something that they are interested in," Mrs Pearson said.
"We are sharing space with other candidates, people like John Fry, Ben Fry, Margie Hogan, Nick Packham, and we kind of look out for each other, because we want to work together.
"If we do get the opportunity to get on to council, then we want to demonstrate that we can actually work together to get things done on council."
Pre-poll is available at the Catholic Parish Centre and the Girl Guides hall.
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