A lot of locals aren’t happy about receiving random texts on their cell phones from the New Democratic Party.
The texts started popping up on phones earlier this week.
“Hi! It’s Adam from the Ontario NDP. Do you know about the election happening on June 7?” it reads.
It then advises to reply “stop” if you want to “opt out” and that SMS rates may apply.
People responding would find themselves in a political discussion with “Adam” who would also provide links to the NDP platform on issues.
A Facebook post on a local group had 121 comments regarding the matter.
Jared Walker, a spokesperson with the Ontario NDP, said the party did not purchase phone numbers and that the texts are either random or were signed up for.
“We use texting as part of our program to get voters out on election day to cast their ballots. We use texting, but we do NOT use lists,” Walker wrote in an email to GuelphToday.
“If you receive a text from us, you've either signed up OR you've received a random text that comes with an opt-out option. Our texting method is sort of like our door-knocking method, we visit everyone!”
