Stances on same-sex marriage were among the tough questions fielded by the two candidates for Devonshire North Central as they faced the area’s seniors.

Diallo Rabain of the Progressive Labour Party and Andrew Simons contrasted notably on this and other issues, with three weeks remaining before constituency 13 voters go to the polls.

“It’s not a question I thought would come up,” Senator Rabain told the audience of roughly 100 people.

“I am not a proponent of same-sex marriage, but I am a proponent of this issue going to a referendum so that the people can decide.”

Mr Simons countered by saying he was in support of marriage equality when it came to civil marriage.

With concerns over medical costs running high among older residents, Mr Simons pointed out that people’s partners were often their primary caregivers in later life.

Sen Rabain repeatedly asserted that accommodating the needs of seniors pinched by rising costs was about “your priority, and what you as a Government care about”.

Challenged by voter Valerie Pethen to name where he would make cuts to provide for seniors, Sen Rabain replied that he would cut “tax concessions that have been given for 20 years for some businesses who are earning profits”.

Mr Simons, who served on the OBA’s shadow health board and is deputy chairman of the Bermuda Health Council (BHeC), outlined government initiatives already under way to head off rising health insurance premiums, as well as the drain inflicted by young workers leaving the country.

“Fundamentally, the people of this constituency need an MP who understands the issues that concern everyone here, and who has access to government ministers,” Mr Simons added, saying he had “a record of getting things done through the political process”.

He pointed to his efforts with the BHeC to track down and penalise employers who break the law and withhold paying health insurance for their staff.

“All I can promise is that I will keep doing what I’ve been doing,” he said.

However, Sen Rabain chastised the governing party for the failure to increase pensions in line with the cost of living since 2011, while withdrawing special concessions for seniors.

“They said during the election campaign that they would protect seniors,” he said. “That is something that the OBA needs to answer for.”

Asked by Charles Jeffers, yesterday’s moderator at Christ Anglican Church, to identify the most pressing issue voiced by seniors, Sen Rabain told the crowd it boiled down to “making ends meet”.

Stressing the complexity of the challenges, Mr Simons spoke of the hardships faced by working families supporting seniors, and the need for an ongoing coordination of support services into a more comprehensive strategy.

The incumbent MP, Glenn Blakeney of the PLP, announced his resignation early in December.

Both candidates have been canvassing the district in the weeks since.

Mr Simons said it had been a humbling process door-knocking and meeting with residents.

Voter concerns, he said, ranged from worries over “how they can live out their old age and maintain their existing standards, while for some it’s the state of the economy”.

“There is some sense that things are improving, and a lot of people want to insure that we continue that,” he said.

Sen Rabain said the Opposition team had been canvassing Devonshire North Central “a tremendous amount”.

“The single thing on people’s minds is just the cost of living, and getting the feeling that Bermuda can be a place where you can make your own way,” he said.

“There are people giving up on Bermuda and feeling there’s nothing here for them. That’s the trend that we need to reverse.”