Nomination News: What's Cooking on the Summer Barbecue Circuit
From downtown Montréal to the Gulf Islands, we got news. Starting from east to west, like usual:
Reader contributions to nomination news help spread the word across the country, so drop me a line and pass along what's cooking in your backyard. Then follow the Pundits' Guide on Twitter for all the latest.
- Mount Royal, QC - I've been hunting for a clipping to confirm it, but I guess it's not so newsworthy that five-term Liberal M.P. Irwin Cotler would be renominated by acclamation at his June 30 meeting, in this long-time Liberal riding in the centre of Montréal. I'm going out on a limb and saying he probably won it Tuesday night, and am entering him into the database.
- Brossard – La Prairie, QC - Former one-term Bloc Québécois M.P. Marcel Lussier will try to win back his seat, the Brossard Éclair is reporting, which he narrowly lost to first-time Liberal M.P. Alexandra Mendès in the last election. A nomination meeting is expected to be held in the fall. Mendès, the first Liberal incumbent to be renominated this past June 14, was elected in 2008 by just 69 votes, in a surprising upset that saw her low-spending campaign (38% of the limit) nevertheless prevail over both Lussier (who spent 62% of the limit), and first-time Conservative candidate Maurice Brossard, who outspent them both (at 70%) and cut into Lussier's vote just enough to turn the riding into a three-way race which saw Lussier fall behind Mendès.
- Northumberland – Quinte West, ON - With former Liberal M.P. and 2008 candidate Paul Macklin bowing out of the race, two new candidates have stepped forward, reports NorthumberlandToday.com. Middle school teacher Andrew McFadyen and past-president of the area Chamber of Commerce Kim Rudd will be facing off in a meeting likely to be scheduled for the fall. The riding is currently represented by two-term Conservative M.P. Rick Norlock, and has also nominated Stan Grizzle as its Green Party candidate. h/t The Liberal Scarf
- Winnipeg South Centre, MB - Conservatives are gearing up for a contested nomination meeting this coming Thursday between Hart Mallin and Raymond Hall, which would be made all the more interesting if this rumour made in a comment on the Manitoba "PolicyFrog" blog were true: the commenter had heard that lawyer and former provincial Liberal candidate Paul Hesse is apparently leader Michael Ignatieff's preferred candidate to replace Liberal M.P. Anita Neville when she announces her retirement later this summer. Now, last we heard, Neville had told the Free Press' Mia Rabson that she had met the criteria for an uncontested renomination and everything appeared to be full steam ahead for the four-term M.P. If you know otherwise, please pass it on (hint, hint).
- Palliser, SK - Lawyer Noah Evanchuk is hoping to translate the energy from his recent involvement in the Ryan Meili provincial NDP leadership campaign into a bid for a federal seat, reports the Accidental Deliberations blog, and was apparently discussing his bid with NDP Leader Jack Layton at a Regina barbecue yesterday, says the Louis Riel Trail blog. No nomination date has been set as yet, and challengers are still possible. The seat is currently held by first-time Conservative M.P. Ray Boughen, who told Discover Moose Jaw late last week that he intended to run again "if an election is called in the not too distant future". Boughen assumed the seat after the resignation of former M.P. Dave Batters, whose tragic suicide earlier this week shocked and momentarily united the political class in their grief and disbelief. Batters' funeral is today, and he is being warmly remembered in Moose Jaw and elsewhere. [UPDATE: Buckdog reports that other Meili campaign activists are set to announce federal bids in Regina – Qu'Appelle, SK and Regina – Lumsden – Lake Centre, SK soon as well].
- Edmonton Centre, AB - Lots of activity and speculation in the provincial capital this past week, following on Lewis Cardinal's announcement last week for the NDP, and the Town Hall Meeting and Canada Day visit of Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff. Blogger Ken Chapman has also heard that 2008 candidate Jim Wachowich is taking himself out of the running, but that a former provincial candidate Mary MacDonald is hitting the pavement in his place. And after speaking with Wachowich himself, Daveberta.ca is confirming this morning that indeed he is not running again, but plans to support whoever the Liberal candidate is. Daveberta, Alex Abboud and the conservative Alberta Aardvark blog all attended Ignatieff's town hall and have a full rundown. Given that Ignatieff apparently said "that he would pull the plug if there were not significant changes to EI saying that he will 'not settle for anything other than substantial reform'," the Edmonton Centre Liberal association is apparently set to move its planned September nomination meeting forward.
Meantime, the Calgary Herald's Jason Fekete checked in with political leaders at the Stampede on their state of election readiness, and reports Liberal Senator Grant Mitchell as saying that "the Grits haven't yet nominated any candidates in Alberta's 28 ridings but expect to have all hopefuls secured by the end of August. 'Minority governments generally are unstable and you can see where this one is particularly unstable,' Mitchell said. 'We're absolutely focused on being ready for a fall election, and we feel very good about it'." NDP and Green Party officials expect to be running most of their 2008 federal Alberta candidates again, Fekete also learned. - New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - The Conservative nomination meeting date has now been set for Saturday, July 25, Tri-CityNews.com is reporting, and although Paul Forseth has withdrawn from the race, four candidates remain in the running, including Diana Dilworth and Lorraine Brett as reported here numerous times, and two new names for me: Mark Lea-McKeown, who is currently a member of the Burnaby – New Westminster Conservative riding executive, and Andy Wickey, the owner of an insurance and investment services firm in Coquitlam and former member of the Royal Ceylon Air Force. More from the Tenth to the Fraser blog here.
- Saanich – Gulf Islands, BC - Green Party Leader Elizabeth May might have told the Chronicle-Herald on Tuesday that she is still considering any of 5 ridings to run in, but insider speculation is centring on this west coast seat as the likely target for several reasons. They include a Facebook group which recently popped up and has been joined by 68 people including key members of May's inner circle, while the Facebook group encouraging her to run in Guelph has only 4 members. Other signals are said to include her lengthy interview with the local Island Tides newspaper (largish PDF file), her recent book signing on Saltspring Island, and her planned attendance at the upcoming Saanich – Gulf Islands Green Party district association AGM on July 9. Numerous Liberal bloggers are strongly encouraging her away from Guelph and to head out west (though not all), and NDPers are Babble'ing over two threads about her chances there and what kind of opposition she might face. One anonymous commenter on the Calgary Grit's post claims to have heard that five-term Conservative M.P. Gary Lunn might not run again, but I certainly haven't found any documentary evidence of that (although again I'm always happy to receive any news by email, hint, hint). May meanwhile has not confirmed any of the speculation but did tell a Calgary fundraiser earlier this week that she would be running in a rural riding, the WesternStandard.ca is reporting.
Reader contributions to nomination news help spread the word across the country, so drop me a line and pass along what's cooking in your backyard. Then follow the Pundits' Guide on Twitter for all the latest.
Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Bloc Québécois, Conservatives, Greens, Liberals, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam
posted by The Pundits' Guide at
7:49 AM
8 Comments:
Yes- more encouragements and hints for possible confirmation [or not] of that rumour- it certainly would be a material difference in SGI if it turns out that Lunn is thinking of retiring.
And if there is such a rumour, and its considered to have a solid basis, then that may be part of May's interest in the riding?
As far as I know, Anita is going to run if there is a fall election, or at least that's the impression I got from her staffer/assistant as of last week.
If she is planning to to retire, or being forcibly retired, there wasn't much indication at the Winnipeg Liberal events in the past week.
Hi Ken, I'm just reporting it as a rumour that I'm trying to confirm or refute.
Sarah, I appreciate your taking the time to pass along the local angle.
OK, back to the barbecues everyone!
honestly i couldn't even care where may runs , not trying to be rude but i think she's the worse thing that has ever happened to the green party and i don't invision her picking up a seat during a general election , this idea of her's that it should be the green parties number 1 priority to elect her is just plain silly and could mean party resources might not be used in other critical ridings and instead wasted on her plus she will almost campaign exclusively in 1 riding and not do the things a leader is suppose to do on a national scale .
I thought May was a very credible candidate, at least as qualified as many who were elected, and I'm not a Green.
Why is it that the Cons are so far ahead in preparedness, with so many candidates nominated, if they aren't even responsible for triggering an election on a non-confidence vote? Do you think they'll break their own law again and call an election at a time of their choosing?
Hi igm, and thanks for taking the time to comment. The Conservatives renominated all their incumbents automatically on May 4, as a result of a push by some incumbents who were facing challenges back home but had to do House Duty in Ottawa as government backbenchers to keep the government from falling. The party decided to implement a policy whereby a referendum of members was held, and if greater than two-thirds of the existing members in a constituency voted to have a nomination meeting, one would be held. That threshold was not met in any riding, and so on May 4 all 143 incumbents were declared renominated. Subsequent to that, Inky Mark from Dauphin-Swan River-Marquette announced his retirement, so they were down to 142 incumbents. Meantime, they have also renominated their 2008 candidates in a select number of ridings they believe they did well in last time, to give those candidates a head start this time around.
Anon, I realize different people have different preferences for candidates and parties. But as a strategic exercise, if you were considering the best strategy for a small political party trying to grow in a first-past-the-post system with a per-voter subsidy, what would you do? Because that's the issue Greens are grappling with. It's hard to do everything at once, so what is their job one?
I had previously thought their job one in the last election was to get their leader elected, but was surprised to learn that her riding had not spent the limit after all, even in spite of having sufficient funds transferred from the party to do so. This time they have made an explicit strategic decision to priorize the leader's seat, but have decided that her earlier choice of seat would have to be modified. As an observer, my role is to document those decisions and their outcomes, and to encourage readers such as yourself to consider what the other options might have been, whether the party made the best choice or not, and what you might have done in their shoes instead. Fair enough?
Again, I appreciate both of you reading and taking the time to comment.
I was under the impression that Neville would be running again. She's a scrapper and is afterall the last Manitoba Liberal MP.
Hi Anon,
OK, I've heard that from two places now. Perhaps if the election were to be held several years from now it might be different, but I guess that Policy Frog commenter is outvoted by the commenters on this blog.
Thanks for taking the time to stop by and pass along what you heard.
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