Political candidates have exactly one week to get as many ads in front of voters as they can.

Whether they flood your mailbox like these ones, or you hear then on your radio, or see them on TV, they are unavoidable this time of the year.

WIU Political Science Professor Keith Boeckelman says the number of political ads this year is pretty similar to previous years.

But he has noticed more negativity.

"You have almost no positive ads. You have almost no ads saying why you should elect the person running the ads and almost all why you should not support the opponent. I think candidates realize that voters are cynical. They realize that voters are turned off by politics. I think they may think that message resonates more," said Boeckelman.

Boeckelman also feels this year's political ads lack creativity.

He says they seem to be the same ads as 20 years ago, just with different candidates.

Nevertheless, we asked about their effectiveness this close to the election.

"I think most people have their minds made up by now. There's a relatively small slice of voters that are undecided and I think obviously they're going after those. To some extent it can reinforce a voter's decision," said Boeckelman.

Professor Boeckelman thinks many candidates are focusing more on voter turnout this year rather than changing someone's mind.

He says that may be another reason for all the negativity.