Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper has discussed his controversial choice of 14 October as the date for parliamentary elections with the co-president of the Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC). In a phone conversation with Rabbi Reuven Bulka, Harper explained why he had chosen the election date, which this year conincides with the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. "We were very pleased the prime minister chose to contact us directly to talk about this issue, which demonstrated a sincere understanding of our community," Bulka said. "It was clear from the conversation that the prime minister remains very sensitive to these matters, and he explained in detail why he chose this date.
"We know Prime Minister Harper is a man of faith and understands the challenges he must have faced in determining a date for the election. We understand that there will be numerous advance polls at which all Canadians may vote, and that during the course of the writ period, citizens may vote at any Elections Canada office. We will be sharing this information with members of our community to ensure they can participate as fully as possible in the election process."