The Greens--A Candidate In Every Riding?

the Liberal candidate in my riding (Vancouver East) doesn't live in the riding either. She apparently prefers the 'posh' Point Grey.

Didn't Sheila Copps complain that Tony Valeri doesn't live in her riding?

They are doing it for the $1.75 per vote. For the Greens and CAP that means much needed cash for the next election.

But, unlike the Greens, CAP is not dropping people in just for the dough. We are actually in the riding plugging away whether we win or not.

Many candidates in my own neck of the woods are drop-ins. We have husband and wife teams running in different ridings. If they are divorced and living seperate - fine, but if not, like Susan said its just a tad dishonest really.

Roy Whyte

Wow, ease up on the anti-Green propaganda. How is the claim "a candidate in every riding" dishonest when they have a candidate in every riding? The Green party is the fourth party in Canadian history to run a full slate of candidates. That's the FOURTH party. That being said, they are a young party, so having a candidate from somewhere else is understandable. To compare this to the manipulation that kicked Sheila Copps out or some posh west-sider slumming it in the east end just seems mean-spirited, even cynical. <p> I was going to vote NDP until Layton said scrap the Clarity Act. I felt so let down. Then I wondered if I should vote at all. Libby Davies is my MP, so its not like my vote wouldn't have mattered. But I visited the Green Party website and they seem to offer real hope for the future. I realize this is an NDP-CAP site and the Greens are a threat, but that attitude expressed in this post and its comments just seems like cynical politics-as-usual. I used to think voter cynicism was a right-wing phenomenon, but now I'm not so sure... <p> I encourage all Vivers to consider the Green Party, as I am. Voting for them is not a cynical ploy as these comments say, but a way to lay the ground-work for the future. If the Greens poll above 5% nationally on election day they stand to recieve up to a million in campaign financing. The Greens are neither left nor right, and could replace the old PC party and be the heirs to the Red Tory tradition this site has kept alive. <p> <a href="http://www.greenparty.ca/index.php">Green Party Website</a>

To run a full slate takes considerable effort. ALL the parties realize that many candidates are "throwaways", and they do not provide much by way of resources - especially a party which doesn't have corporate backing. Besides, in our system of things, we are supposed to vote the party, not the person. If you like the Green platform, vote Green. If you don't, then vote for another party. It's that simple!

Liberal 'Star' candidate Ken Dryden doesn't live in my riding(York Centre) but he's running here. PM PM probably offered him a Cabinet position - Dryden's looking for power since he lost a power struggle with Pat Quinn for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The interesting thing is that Jack Layton chose to parachute into the riding of Jim Harris, Leader of the Green Party, and Dennis Mills, a popular Liberal MP. I'm sure there was no shortage of excellent NDP talent in the downtown riding of Toronto-Danforth who were asked to step aside for their leader. Jack could have done a better service to his party, and Canada, if he had chosen to run where no such talent exsits -- for example, one of the two PEI ridings who do not yet have an NDP candidate.

Of course, it would have been difficult for Jack Layton to seek the nomination in his home riding of Trinity-Spadina.

Every party will do what it can to get elected. Period. If this means bringing in a ringer, of course they will do this. I would bet that if Mills is succesful in in Toronto Danforth (which is possible - he has roots in the community and he has never been a puppet of the Liberal braintrust) then there is no question that a loyal NDP MP would stand aside to let Layton run.

On the bright side, at least candidates no longer run in more than one riding (like Laurier in 1896, 1904, 1908, 1917).

Same thing happening here Susan. Our GP candidate lives in Toronto 8 hours south from here. And unlike the anon above that consideres this thread anti-greenparty, I see an interesting point your making here.

I agree a candidate should live within the riding. That's just my opinion.

Kevin

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"Love actually, is all around us" --From the movie Love Actually.

Okay, but what happens if a party can't find a candidate in your riding? Do you deny the 5-10% who want to vote Green in your riding, the chance to vote Green? I'm assuming this is the case in the Green Party, and that candidates were not parachuted in from outside to displace locals.

That is actually the case. A candidate will be fielded from ouside the riding if none exists within the riding. Given the choice, I suspect all would prefer if the candidate was local, but a candidate from outside the riding is better than no candidate.

At least you still have the option to vote for that party.

I agree, one must live in the riding they are running for in order to properly represent the people of that riding. That said, I don`t have a Canadian Action Party candidate in my riding of Welland. So I called up the CAP headquarters in Toronto to see if they maybe had a potential candidate. I was told, "No, but you could be a candidate." I replied that I`d be happy to do it, only I don`t know where I`d get the $1000.00 fee for elections Canada. I was then told that if the party had excess funds, they would put the 1 grand up for me, but they are out of funds, understandibly. No big corporate donors here. So I`m still without a CAP candidate, because that`s who I want to vote for. Without a CAP candidate, I`m undecided, except for the fact that the liberals and cons will not get my vote!!!

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Dave Ruston

Dave,

If you can find 100 people to donate each a 100$ and also have those 100 people give you signature of support. Then you can be a CAP candidate.

Kevin

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"Love actually, is all around us" --From the movie Love Actually.

You can thank Jean Chretien for Greens in every riding. Because of the new campaign finance law, the Greens were able to get a loan based on their projected 5-10% total vote in the current election. (5-10% equals $500,000 to $1 million). I think you need over 5% to qualify for public financing. CAP falls below that threshold, and so doesn't have the money to front the deposit. But the Greens do--one more reason to hate the Liberals!

That threshold is also being challenged, just as the 50 candidates was. Once again the charge is being led by the Communist Party. CAP is also involved, and I am sure all the other small parties will join in.

CAP will do well this time out in many ridings. Whether they get the needed threshold Canada wide is a different story as finances are most certainly against us. Unfortunately, CAP will have to wait until the next election to see a real use of the new laws. For the Liberals and Conservatives were the biggest benefactors of the change in the electoral laws as they made it retroactive. They were allowed to keep all their corporate donations AND reap the new windfall. Most unfair really.

Roy