Election candidates answer the question: Why should voters in Lambton-Kent-Middlesex vote for you and your party?
Jim Johnston, Green Party
“The main reason I think for casting a vote for the Green Party is that it’s the right direction. We need to move away from our traditional parties who have gotten mired up in all the politics and have lost sight of the major issues facing us.
The climate change issue is going to be defining crisis of the 21st century and it has gotten almost no recognition during this campaign because the others parties are all wasting their time talking about minor issues. It’s going to involve our economy. We are going to have mitigate the impact of the change on a lot of industries. It’s going to mean new kinds of education. It’s going to be huge.
So the reason why people should vote for me is it sends a clear message to the other parties that you have to pay attention to these other issues and the truth is I had over 3,000 people vote for me and if we put enough shoulder to the will, we will get over the hill.
So it’s a question of building that support and every time you vote for the Green Party, you send a clear message towards the direct that we need to go.
Bev Shipley – Conservative
“I think one, you should go Conservative because actually we are the ones that are looking after, not only families, but seniors. We are the ones giving the advantage of leaving money back in the pockets of people. Right now it would seem that the others, you make it, they’ll take it. Ours is quite the opposite.
There is an ideology difference… for example, when we brought in income splitting other parties were very upset because they said, ‘look at the tax money you are going to lose.’ Our answer to that, or my answer to that, it’s not the government’s money, it’s actually the people’s money. So we think, we should always give the people in Canada the advantage. I think of the people in Wallaceburg, a number of families that are able to income split and seniors that are able to income split. That means they have more disposable income to spend on the things that they need.
So I am going to continue not only for families, agriculture is the largest industry in our riding and that’s my background. I have got a great rapport with commodity organizations and I carry their issues forward and secondly, I have a great rapport with the 17 Legions that we have in this riding of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex. Wallaceburg and Dresden legions, I have a great rapport with them and I support the initiatives that we have done for them over the last number of years. I certainly support anything we can do for Canadian Forces and our Veterans.”
Rex Isaac, NDP
“One of the things I haven’t been able to bring out in a debate and I am so glad you asked this, and this is one of the reasons I try to read your paper whenever I have time and get a free moment is because when you are at a debate and even in an interview, you are only allowed to address the questions that are asked, other than your opening and closing statements.
One of the things that I think is very important and we have seen it now at the advance polls and the turnout at the advance polls. A lot of people are telling me that is usually an indication that people want change. So the difference is that at a local level you have to look at, because we are hearing a lot of people saying ABC (Anything But Conservative ), or ABH (Anything But Harper.)
So if that’s the fact, we don’t want to see one thing, we don’t want to see Liberals and the NDP split the vote and the Conservatives winning again. However the difference between myself and other candidates is experience. I have been a member of my local council since 2008 and before that I was on committees and boards and serving as a volunteer and an active committee member for eight years prior to that.
That in itself is huge. I think that’s part of the growing process. I don’t think that anybody, and I mean no discredit to any of my counterparts, but the thing is, you can’t just wake up one day and say ‘you know what, I think I’d like to be an MP.’. You have to start out at the grassroots level and have some background in local politics and then work your way up. Learn how governance structures work. It’s like, just because I watch Hockey Night in Canada, it doesn’t mean that you’re ready to go hit the ice and take on the Leafs.
You have to be involved in that on a regular basis, know how to identify and relate with constituents and know how to practice good governance and how to move forward in the structure of what you can and cannot do because of law and parliamentary procedures and all the types of things. It think that is it really to my advantage, of my experience, of my background which I don’t believe the other candidates have that. I think that is the one thing I have that the other candidates don’t have.
I do wish them well, I hope that if they are unsuccessful that they try and attempt to run for their local councils and local government and then move up from that point once they get a handle on how things are run.”
Ken Filson, Liberal
“I think they can have faith in me that I represent their views and I will represent their views in Ottawa. I grew up on the farm, but I also lived in a small urban setting. So I have my foot in both urban and rural sections of this riding.
One of the biggest things that I think people have to think about is the tone of the election. The fear and dividedness that has been presented by the Conservative Party, it hasn’t been by Justin Trudeau.
Justin Trudeau although he has been attacked constantly by both parties has been very clear. He would never attack Mr. Harper or Mr. Mulcair personally. We will discuss their platform and their record but we will not attack them personally. That’s the kind of thing that we have to have in this country. That’s the kind of change we need to raise the level of political debate. It’s gotten to the gutter in an American style attacks and it’s the Liberal Party and Justin Trudeau that are providing a real alternative and real possibility to elevate the level of debate in this country.
That’s terribly important. You have seen the ads and the radio ads put out by the Liberals. They are positive. By the NDP and the Conservatives, they are negative. There are actually quite a few of untruths in the Conservative ads. We know, don’t worry. If someone is trying to scare you, why would you vote for them? You really need to think about what you want a government to represent. I think you want it to represent positives things. This country could be better and we will make it better.”
Election day is Oct. 19.
