Visible provenance
Every material assertion is classified as verified fact, public record, candidate statement, public discussion, IntelliSync view, or AI analysis.
Public methodology
Credibility is a system, not a tone.
This method applies across candidates, issues, sources, and editorial decisions.
Trend, not prediction
Any future index describes the tone of a bounded public sample by issue. It does not measure candidate support, vote intention, or a likely outcome.
Thresholds before scores
A score requires at least 20 qualifying items, 10 distinct authors or accounts, and three source types. Otherwise the site shows insufficient evidence.
Non-scientific participation
Polls ask about issue trade-offs. A pseudonymous cookie limits each browser to one response per poll; it does not verify one person. Results are suppressed below the privacy threshold, show response count and field dates, and remain in the archive after closure. They do not represent Chatham-Kent.
Equal responses
Every registered candidate receives the same questions and verification path. Responses are versioned and separated from editorial context.
Bilingual parity
Facts, methods, metadata, polls, and editorial copy have English-French parity. A one-language candidate response keeps the original with a clearly labelled reviewed translation.
Current state
The community poll is implemented behind an environment-specific activation gate. The sentiment index and candidate responses remain disabled.