SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Sitting in the steel chairs with the sounds of blowdryers and electric razors, Doug Wourms chuckles at the idea of the barber poll, saying this would be the first election he would participate in it.

Barber Steve Payne, left, holds the barber poll as customer Mark Feldberg puts in a ballot at Ragged Ass Barbers on Wednesday. -

"I think there's some science behind it. The majority of the people that come here, it probably evens out I would think with the different viewpoints," said Wourms.

It's not an official poll, but at Ragged Ass Barbers the votes have been coming in for about two weeks for four of the Western Arctic candidates. The results show NDP incumbent Dennis Bevington in the lead with 30 per cent, Conservative candidate Sandy Lee just behind him with 28 per cent, Liberal candidate Joe Handley holds 23 per cent of the votes and Green Party candidate Eli Purchase received 19 per cent as of Thursday morning.

Steve Payne and two friends took over the 48 Street business and the barber poll from past owner Henry White, and have kept White's polling tradition alive.

"Henry White used to own the shop before, he did a barber poll during every election. We can't take credit for the idea. It's him that started it. We just wanted to keep up with it, see how it turns out," said Payne.

"In the past it's always been very accurate, and it looks like it's pretty accurate now too."

A recent national poll put out by EKOS surveyed more than 3,000 Canadian votes and showed that the support lay behind the Conservatives at 33.7 per cent, the NDP at 28 per cent and the Liberals at 23.7 per cent.

"Just the fact that Bevington is leading here and Jack Layton is second place in Canada, it's been pretty accurate," said Payne.

He said the ballot box has been out for about two weeks, and whoever comes in for a trim is welcomed to put in a vote.

"We tell people to just throw one in. Every three or four days I pull them out and count them."

He said throughout the poll, Bevington has been ahead, with Lee in second and Purchase in third. It's only recently that the Liberal and Green candidates have traded places.

Payne said there have been close to 150 votes since the last time he opened the ballot box and counted.

"What you've got here, is you've got the people who actually get out and vote," said Payne.

"Most of the people who come in here pay attention to it and are the demographic that you're looking for."

With the federal election ramping up to election day on Monday, only time will tell if the barber poll is accurate or if the business should just stick to polls of the blue, white and red type.

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