TORONTO – Green Party Leader Elizabeth May today congratulates Green candidates Camille Labchuk (Trinity–Spadina), Shahbaz Mir (Scarborough–Agincourt), Larry Ashmore (Macleod) and Brian Deheer (Fort McMurray–Athabasca) for their strong finishes in yesterday’s federal by-election.
"I am proud of all our candidates and I thank them for their hard work and dedication," said Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada and MP for Saanich–Gulf Islands. "We made important gains in Macleod, where we finished ahead of the NDP, and in Trinity–Spadina, where we tied with the Conservatives. Our candidates brought new and innovative ideas to the table, and they campaigned with integrity."
“I would like to thank my entire team for their tremendous efforts in this campaign – Together, we were a voice for Toronto voters who are tired of politics as usual,” said Ms. Labchuk. “Over the course of this campaign I heard from thousands of Torontonians that they want more from our country’s political leaders – they want meaningful action on the climate crisis, they want a more sustainable economy, and they want to fix our broken democracy.”
As had been expected, the number of voters who showed up to the polls in each of these by-election was exceptionally low: Turnout was only 31 per cent in Trinity–Spadina, 29 per cent in Scarborough-Agincourt, below 20 per cent in Macleod, and a mere 15 percent in Fort McMurray-Athabasca.
"Scheduling this by-election for the Canada Day long weekend was clearly a deliberate attempt on the part of the Harper Conservatives to drive down voter turnout," said May. "However, the larger issue remains our undemocratic voting system – many voters who felt that their preferred candidate had no chance of winning in their riding simply stayed home. This by-election just goes to show how urgently we need proportional representation in this country, to ensure that every vote counts."
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Contact:
Nicholas Gall
Communications Coordinator
Green Party of Canada
(613) 614 4916
nicholas.gall@greenparty.ca