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Meet the tattoo artist, the farmer and the award-winning senior who share names with party leaders

Thanks to the longest federal election campaign in modern Canadian history, party leaders Stephen Harper, Tom Mulcair, Justin Trudeau and Elizabeth May are all household names. Their daily rallies, platform announcements and campaign missteps are constantly in the news or being scrutinized on social media.

But what about their counterparts — the everyday people who just happen to share the same names as the federal leaders vying for votes?

The CBC's Reg Sherren conducted an experiment looking for such human homonyms during the 2011 federal campaign for a segment on The National called Political Name Calling.

But four years later and with some new leaders in place, it's time for an update. CBC News talked to three people about the challenges of sharing a name with someone so well-known.

Stephen Harper, 'Senior of the Year'

Stephen Harper might not be the prime minister, but he gets the royal treatment in his hometown of Bracebridge, Ont.

"I get ribbed about it quite often, especially in our own town here. I get introduced as the prime minister," said the 79-year-old.

Harper has known that he shares a name with the Conservative leader since 2003, when his political counterpart won the job of leading the newly united party that emerged from the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservatives. He thinks sharing the same name as the prime minister is an honour.

His political involvement: The Harper of Bracebridge has never met the Conservative leader. He says the closest he has come is in his work with the Bracebridge Agriculture Society, which puts on the town's fall fair.

Harper's been involved with the fall fair for more than 50 years and was nominated by his municipality in 2013 for the Ontario Senior of the Year Award. When accepting the award, he was joined on stage by his local Tory MP, Tony Clement, a prominent member of Harper's cabinet.

What he has in common: Harper was stumped when CBC News asked him what he had in common with the Conservative leader. It took a bit of coaxing before he found one similarity.

"We're both honest people," he said.

His political advice: "I've been a Conservative all my life. I'm not about to change," he said. "I just wish [the other Stephen Harper] the best. I hope he gets elected again."

Elizabeth May, the farmer

When Elizabeth May became leader of the Green Party in 2006, a reporter called up a resident of Oro-Medonte, Ont., and asked her if she was "the" Elizabeth May. It was one of the first of mix-ups that Elizabeth May, a farmer who owns a cow-calf operation in the small town 200 kilometres north of Toronto, experienced. Since then, she has had to endure many more — not all of them unintentional.

"My husband keeps saying, 'I need to try and remember to get right to the party and get [an] Elizabeth May sign. I want to put it up at the gate,'" said May, who is in her seventies. "We've never done it, but that's something he'd love to do for the hell of it."

Why she can't vote: Ironically, May the farmer can't vote in the Oct. 19 election because she doesn't have Canadian citizenship. Her husband is Canadian, but she herself is Scottish. She says if she could vote, it would be for Harper.

"I was born with blue blood, so I'll always vote Conservative, no matter what," she said.

What she has in common: Both Mays are originally from outside Canada. May, the politician, was born in Connecticut while May, the farmer hails from Perth, Scotland. In terms of appearance, May says she shares few similarities with the Green leader apart from hair colour. She does have similar views on environmental issues as the Green Party, though.

"The Conservatives right now, their one downfall is global warming," she said. "I don't think Stephen Harper takes it seriously enough, and that's something that the Green Party are very strong about."

What she would do as leader: If May of Ore-Medonte were running the country, there are a few things she would do differently. First, she would make voting mandatory so those elected are a "fair representation" of the country.

"I [also] think the Senate should be abolished by law," she said. "Yes, they have to change the Constitution, but so what? It's doable. Everybody seems to think it's such a big deal."

Justin Trudeau, the tattoo artist

After numerous — failed — attempts to track down another Justin Trudeau in Canada, CBC News took the search south of the border to Pensacola, Fla., home to a tattoo artist of the same name as the Liberal leader.

The other Justin Trudeau says his family is originally from Canada and moved to northern Michigan in 1927. Besides family members, he has only met a handful of other Trudeaus in the United States.

When he first learned: The 28-year-old first heard about Canada's Trudeau family when he was a little kid.

"My dad named his snowmobile Pierre's French Tickler," he said. "I know Justin's dad is Pierre Trudeau, the former prime minister, and ever since then, I've kind of always known about [Justin]."

What he has in common: Perhaps the biggest thing both Trudeaus have in common are their tattoos. Tattoo artist Trudeau has a fully inked body while political Trudeau has a tattoo of a raven and a globe on his left shoulder, which the country got a glimpse of at his infamous boxing match with Senator Patrick Brazeau.

Florida's Trudeau thinks there is more to it than just that though.

"I think we kind of have similar facial structures," he says, referring to his cheekbones. "He's got a little bit more of a wavier, curlier hair where mine just sticks straight."

His political interests: Trudeau admits he's not into politics. Though he knows all about Trudeau and his family, he didn't know anything else about the upcoming election.

"I'm a tattoo artist, so I don't really have a whole lot of time to dig in and watch TV and figure out things. I mean, I'm always behind a piece of paper, behind somebody's skin."

He did run for student council when he was in high school, though. "I never even got in… I just ran. I think my dad kind of pushed me for it."

A week of phone calls and scouring phonebooks and social media for someone who shares a name with NDP Leader Tom Mulcair has come up dry. Any leads? Send them to haydn.watters@cbc.ca.