One of the byproducts of negative election ads is low voter turnout.

The Conservatives know that by throwing mud at whoever is leading the Liberals, it will persuade some of their supporters not to show up at the ballot box.

Thus, it should come as no surprise that Stephen Harper's party smears anyone who happens to be heading the Liberals.

In the 1984 and 1988 elections, 75.3 percent of eligible voters cast ballots.

In 1993, that fell to 69.6 percent. It was 67 percent in 1997, and only 61.2 percent in 2000.

In 2008, there was a record low turnout of 58.8 percent for a federal election.

If the Conservatives can suppress the turnout even more in the May 2 federal election, their chances of winning will increase.

That's because wealthier voters—who tend to vote Conservative—are more likely to show up at the polls than low-income Canadians.

In recent years, the polls have closed at 7 p.m. on the West Coast, which offers another advantage to the Conservatives.

People in the Lower Mainland who take long transit rides to work or school may have difficulty reaching a polling station before it closes. For them, it was probably easier to vote when the deadline was 8 p.m.

Under the law, employers are required to give workers three consecutive hours off to vote. The employer selects the time. But it doesn't appear to be a right that is often exercised—or, in some workplaces, probably even that well known.

In its defence, Elections Canada will say that the polling stations open earlier (at 7 a.m.) on the West Coast, so there are still 12 hours to put an X on the ballot. But many people probably aren't going to think about voting first thing in the morning.

Meanwhile in Quebec and Ontario, polling stations close at 9:30 p.m. in their time zones.