K-W VOTES | Guns, environment, rural internet top issues in Kitchener-Conestoga

Residents in Kitchener-Conestoga are considering the issues as they decide who to vote for in Monday's federal election.

The riding is a mix of some city and rural voters. It means candidates are discussing issues like the opioid crisis impacting Kitchener while also talking about home heating and access to internet in more rural parts of the riding.

The townships are growing and will rely on funding from both the provincial and federal governments to help build infrastructure to accommodate that growth, local mayors have said.

There are five candidates currently in the running for Kitchener-Conestoga.

Conservative Harold Albrecht is the incumbent.

He's once again facing Liberal candidate Tim Louis, who ran in 2015 and lost to Albrecht by a narrow margin. Riani de Wet is the NDP candidate for the riding, Stephanie Goertz is running for the Green Party while Koltyn Wallar is the People's Party candidate.

About the riding

Population: 100,709

Number of voters: 69,166

The seat is currently held by Conservative Harold Albrecht, who has been the MP since 2006.

He's narrowly defeated Liberal candidate Tim Louisin 2015. Albrecht received 43.29 per cent of the vote, just ahead of Louis who had 42.76 per cent. There was a 251 vote difference between them, Election's Canada final vote tally showed.

Albrecht won the 2011 election with 54.12 per cent of the vote.

Prior to 2004, the riding was split up between Waterloo-Wellington, Kitchener Centre and Cambridge. Waterloo-Wellington was held by Liberal Lynn Myers from its creation in 1997 to 2004.

More coverage of Kitchener-Conestoga

Read more of CBC Kitchener-Waterloo's coverage of the race in Kitchener-Conestoga: