Cameron Wigmore: Green Party Member

October 23, 2006

Elizabeth May Runs In London Byelection!

The race is on to elect our first Green MP.

It’s definite. Elizabeth May is running in London Centre North.

We need your help in electing Elizabeth.

We need volunteers. We need donations. We need people to make calls. We need to let every Green voter in Canada know. For details go to http://www.greenparty.ca/page301.html

...and... http://blog.greenparty.ca/en/node/133

See news coverage through the links below.
(canada.com)
(cbc.ca)

3 comments:

camsax@gmail.com said...: Green Party eyes two seats in House
New leader to run in by-election
Still hopes to woo Turner to cause
Oct. 24, 2006. 01:00 AM
SUSAN DELACOURT
OTTAWA BUREAU CHIEF

OTTAWA—The Green Party is now dreaming of two seats in the Commons in the
near future — its aspirations doubled in one week by the call of a Nov. 27
by-election and last week's ouster of Garth Turner from the Conservative
caucus.

Green Party leader Elizabeth May had a busy weekend. She's announced she is
running as the Green candidate in the by-election in London North Centre and
she paid a call on Turner at his home in Halton, to talk more about whether
he should become a Green MP.

"It's just the beginning," May laughed yesterday, discussing this rapid,
unexpected arrival of prospects for the Greens to get a place in the
Commons.

She hopes to win the seat that is now vacant because veteran Liberal MP Joe
Fontana has resigned to seek the mayor's job in his home city. May says she
knows the city reasonably well, having worked on some environmental issues
there in her old role as head of the Sierra Club.

It promises to be an interesting contest. Dianne Haskett, a former mayor who
courted controversy by opposing Gay Pride in the city, is running as the
Conservative candidate. The Liberals' party president, Mike Eizenga, who
lives and works in London, is also considering his options, not responding
yesterday to questions about whether he would run. The New Democrats will be
nominating a candidate later this week.

May's enthusiasm to take the plunge in London stands in contrast to
Conservative Public Works Minister Michael Fortier, the unelected senator
that Prime Minister Stephen Harper put in his cabinet to bolster Montreal
representation.

Fortier is not running in the other by-election called by Harper over the
weekend — in the Quebec riding of Repentigny, vacated by the death of Bloc
MP Benoît Sauvageau this summer. Opposition critics have seized on Fortier's
refusal as a broken accountability promise and a failure of the Tories to
live up to their commitment to democratic reform.

Jean Lapierre, the former transport minister and Quebec lieutenant in the
past Liberal government, said Fortier is also flying in the face of
constitutional conventions.

"You know, if you're a non-elected minister of the Crown, you have to go
before the people at the first available opportunity. Mr. Fortier now is
sitting comfortably in the Senate not having to talk to any electors and
pretending that he's representing the region of Montreal. He's not
representing anybody but himself," Lapierre said.

The Conservative Government House leader, Rob Nicholson, said simply that
Fortier would run in the next general election.

May, meanwhile, said that Harper is taking a significant political risk
asking voters to pass judgment in by-elections in the current political
climate, which hasn't been overly kind to Conservatives.

"This is a referendum on Mr. Harper in many ways — the Clean Air Act,
foreign policy, whether his approach to fiscal issues and taxation is really
benefiting communities," May said.

Liberals have protested that Harper's timing is cynical — the by-elections
are the same week Liberals kick off their Montreal leadership convention.

Current standings in the House of Commons are: Conservatives, 124; Liberals,
101; Bloc Québécois, 50; NDP, 29; Independents, 2; and vacant, 2.; 11:03 a.m.
camsax@gmail.com said...: May wants to colour London riding green
Thu, October 26, 2006
By CHIP MARTIN

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is asking voters in London-North-Centre to help make history by sending her to the House of Commons.

She comes to London today for her nomination meeting and to kick-start her campaign to become Canada's first Green MP.

May is unopposed at the event, slated for 7 p.m. at the Elephant and Castle restaurant downtown.

May was elected party leader in August. Without a seat in the Commons, she has been forced to watch proceedings from the visitors' gallery.

"I really think voters can make history if they send me to the House of Commons," she said yesterday.

(snip)

In the meantime, she was quick to jump at the London opportunity to press her party's concern for the environment and conservative fiscal policies.

"You'll see a tremendous amount of me," May vowed. "I do want to try to knock on every door in London-North-Centre, which is hard to do in a short election.

"I want to be the best MP London-North-Centre has ever had, quite honestly," said the high-energy, fast-talking environmentalist. "I want to work really hard for the riding."

She said she is concerned about air quality issues in London, where she has worked with local Green Party members in the past.

May said she will push for greater access to a university education, promote a public health-care system, back a drug plan for seniors and encourage job opportunities.

"I will change Canadian politics, I promise," May said. "I will raise the tone. I will not be part of that bully-boy behaviour we see in the House of late. I will focus on real issues of substance and down-to-earth solutions. I will create a level of dialogue and respect the intelligence of the voter."

May said she expects the riding will get more attention than in the past if it is represented by the leader of a federal party.

(snip); 10:04 a.m.
camsax@gmail.com said...: With all three comments on this post made by myself, I feel a little wierd, like I'm the only person here. But my hits are at 2000...

Anyways, here's a post election analysis with some colour charts, one of many made both by the media and bloggers.

http://itsgettinghotinhere.org/853

"...Whereas red and blue, and a little bit of orange have tended to maintain a monopoly on political representation through colour, at least in a corner of Canada some green has started to appear on the map. In the recent (Nov. 27th, 2006) by-election in the London North Centre (LNC) riding in Ontario, Federal Green Party Leader; Elizabeth May managed to capture 25.84% of the vote, increasing the Green Party of Canada’s support in the riding by 371% since the January, 2006 federal elections...

...The strong showing of the Green Party in the LNC by-election also played messenger, and further breakdown of the poll-by-poll outcome shows that the Green Party ‘stole’ votes from every party, with the NDP bearing the brunt of the loss.

Party Votes Current % Previous % Difference Change in base
Liberal 13285 34.87 40.12 -5.25 -13%
Green 9845 25.84 5.49 +20.35 +371%
Conserv. 9327 24.48 29.9 -5.42 -18%
NDP 5365 14.08 23.75 -9.67 -41%

The bulk of the Green votes were gained in both the established professional communities as well as at and surrounding the University of Western Ontario. That being said, the Green Party saw significant increase at every poll...

...This occasion could very well be seen as having been an opportunity for voters to vote without constraint or concern for outcomes that may emerge when the entire government is in question during a federal election with the first past the post system (ie. A Green vote may be perceived as waste if there is no hope of victory). This election, however, acted as proof that the Party does have the capacity and the support to be a verified contender in an upcoming election.

It was also interesting to observe that the Liberal Candidate in this by-election cited the environment as being his first priority. Subsequently, people that valued the environment but felt as though the Green Party would not adequately represent them, were still able to convey that concern through their vote..."; 10:15 p.m.