BY HEIDI ULRICHSEN
The man who ran for the Conservatives in Sudbury in the last election has signed up as a candidate for the Progressive Canadian Party.
Stephen Butcher lost the Conservative nomination to Kevin Serviss last spring, and recently resigned from the party.
The Progressive Canadian Party seeks to continue the tradition of the old Progressive Conservative Party, which ceased to exist after it merged with the Canadian Alliance in December 2003.
"I'm running for them for several reasons. Obviously, they don't have the religious-driven force that the Conservative Party does now," says Butcher.
"I truly believe that the new party is progressive, versus the Conservative Party, which is not progressive. I think the Conservatives are just the Reform
Party with a new title."
The Progressive Canadian Party has a great platform, he says. Members want to improve things like infrastructure and health care instead of giving huge corporate tax cuts.
"We certainly don't believe in over-spending, but there are things such as health care and military, and infrastructure - you can go down the list - that need to be fixed."
The man is hoping people will cast more votes for him because they recognize his name from previous elections.
Butcher says he waited until this month to leave the Conservative party
because he wanted the local riding association to refund what he had spent on the 2004 election.
Now he can finance his campaign for the Progressive Canadian Party.
"To wind up an election takes a very long time, and there was an extremely short period between the two elections. I didn't get my final cheques back from them until a week before I left (the party)," he says.
To contact Butcher, phone 692-5025.
