I think many of us really register that an election is on the horizon when the signs start to pop up all around us. For the past couple of weeks candidates have been knocking on doors, talking to voters and asking them if they want to put up a sign to show their support.

Now campaign volunteers are driving up and down those streets, putting up signs, hoping you and I will be impressed by the support those signs represent.

Campaigning means long days for the candidates. Every day starts early; picking a commuter spot, handing out pamphlets, talking to voters (those few who are willing to stop and chat) and shaking lots of hands.

It means always smiling, even when the voter turns out to favour an opponent and delivers a few choice words on why he or she will never consider you. The early evening hours are for door knocking (bring the smile and winning attitude) and then there are other organized evening events such as all-candidate meetings and town halls.

I spoke with a few candidates yesterday and all of them were focused on the job of canvassing. There is a lot of talk about the impact of social media on politics. Maybe, just maybe, a few young Ontarians will get engaged because of social media but I have yet to find a candidate who doesn't think that the door-to-door slog isn't job number one.

Rocco Rossi, the Progressive Conservative candidate in Eglinton-Lawrence estimates he's knocked on 12,000 doors already. Up in Willowdale, Conservative candidate Tory Vince Agovino told me he's already canvassed the whole riding and is about to start the second canvas.

Laurel Broten says her Liberal red shoes are getting worn out hitting the streets of Etobicoke-Lakeshore. In Trinity-Spadina Liberal candidate Sarah Thomson's campaign keeps very exact numbers – 6,214 and counting. And so it goes.

The media focuses on the leaders but a key for a party to win the election is how well the local riding party organizations are financed and run. Money, of course, is important.

Provincially the Liberal Party, Ontario's governing party for the past eight years, has the most money in the bank. The Tories are next and then the NDP.

Candidates are less likely to talk about money and if asked most will respond with vague statements like "we'll be fine" or "we have enough for what we need to do" or more ominously "we will borrow what we need to get the job done."

If you're interested in the local party finances in your riding you can find out for yourself.

A few minutes on the Ontario Elections website  gives you a sense of it. It's a bit of work to find your riding, and scroll through it. The pay off is that you can find out who donated how much last year. You can see the full financial statement each party filed and take a look at the bottom line.

Locally finances vary from riding to riding. Here in the GTA ridings, it is usually the Liberals with the most in the kitty. That shouldn't come as a surprise. The Liberals hold 32 of the 43 ridings I consider the GTA. Money pays for those signs, all kinds of organization needs, polling and advertising.

I spent some time looking at the 2010 financial statements for the eight ridings in the Peel region. Everyone is telling me they are a key to the election. In all but one of the ridings, Brampton West, the Liberals have significantly more money than the Tories. The NDP organizations lag badly and in a couple of cases reported a deficit.

Tonight on LeDrew Live Stephen will talk to the Chief Returning Officer for Ontario, Greg Essensa. The turnout in 2007 was only 53.6 per cent and we'll talk about what is being done to change that. Stephen will also talk to journalists covering the campaign and we'll hear from our student panel.

And remember, we're streaming the show live on cp24.com. Join me on our online chat for a discussion on the campaign and the pertinent issues of the day.