With less than a week to go until the much-anticipated Nov. 2 midterm elections, we have been increasingly bombarded with campaign advertisements, signs and phone calls from local support groups.

But what’s an election season without candidates’ mudslinging, false statements and mischaracterizations of each other?

In the Wisconsin gubernatorial race, Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker (R) is pitted against Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (D) and both candidates have taken their share of jabs at one another.

In Tuesday’s Tribune, we reported Walker has called Barrett a “radical environmentalist” and “polluter” because of problems with Milwaukee’s sewage system.

Walker’s mudslinging dates back to his years as a Marquette student in the late ’80s. When running for president of the Associated Students of Marquette University (the former title of Marquette Student Government), he distributed brochures accusing his opponent, John Quigley, to be “constantly shouting about fighting the administration.”

In a 2002 article in the Tribune, Walker lamented his ASMU campaign approach, saying he “focused on personalities and egos.”

But Barrett is just as guilty of taking shots as Walker is. His campaign recently produced a commercial calling out Walker’s alleged “mismanagement” of Milwaukee, and placing blame on the mayor for the city’s economy being in shambles.

In turn, Walker has pointed the finger at Barrett, blaming him for spurring the mudslinging battle this election season.

And in the senatorial race, U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) and his Republican opponent, Oshkosh businessman Ron Johnson, have also been involved in potential mischaracterizations of each other.

At last Friday’s final debate between the two, Feingold said Johnson has misrepresented both Feingold’s spending and voting record in campaign advertisements.

Across the country, and specifically in Wisconsin, many candidates have unfortunately resorted to advertisements that negatively characterize their opponents. They use mudslinging, dirty tricks and mischaracterization as a way to gain voters’ support.

According to Politifact Wisconsin, a service used to distinguish between fallacious and truthful statements made by politicians, Barrett has falsely claimed, “Scott Walker says he would ban stem cell research.”

Also, according to the website, Walker has falsely said, “Since being elected, (Barrett) has dumped 8.2 billion gallons of raw sewage into Lake Michigan.”

While this website is a great source to sort the nuggets of truth from the trash, its services should not be necessary in the first place.

The fact that politicians lie to get into office only damages their credibility and the credibility of the American democratic system as a whole. We deserve better, and we should be able to trust our candidates to speak the truth. If we can’t trust what they’re saying now, we’re not going to be able to trust what they say once they’re actually in office.

Dramatic campaign advertisements are strewn across our televisions, and frankly, we’re all probably sick and tired of seeing them. Attack advertisements can even turn us away from the candidates the ads are apparently “supporting.”

For example, Barrett for Wisconsin, a Barrett political action committee, funds several ads that declare, “…can’t trust him (Walker) with our money, can’t trust him to tell the truth.”

Candidates should remain focused on painting a truthful image of their own merits and political platform, while pointing out deficiencies in opponents should be done in a more responsible and accurate way. They should encourage supporters and political action committees to do the same.

The American people deserve nothing less from their future leaders.