With the Green Party of Canada polling nearly as well as the federal New Democrats, three young people have stepped forward to contest the party's nomination in Nickel Belt.
In a release Wednesday, the Nickel Belt Greens Electoral District Association said it was “overjoyed to announce” the competition, marking the first time the party has had a contested nomination in the riding.
Ericha Hendel and Casey Lalonde of Sudbury, and Kris Rivard of Sturgeon Falls will all be on the ballot for the right to represent Greens in the October vote. The date and location for the nomination meeting is still being determined.
The three will face off against each other and against a “none of the above” option, which always appears on Green Party nomination ballots to give supporters a choice even when there is just one candidate.
“The Nickel Belt Greens are just thrilled with the fact that we'll have three excellent choices to represent the Green Party in Nickel Belt in the October election,”
Steve May, chair of the Nickel Belt Greens nomination committee, is quoted as saying in a news release. “Clearly, what we're seeing now with three qualified contestants is the result of a growing national interest in the Green Party of Canada.
“Polls show that the Green surge is for real, but if you want real hard evidence closer to home, look no further than what's happening in Nickel Belt right now.”
According to CBC's poll tracker, the Greens are at 11.1 per cent support, just behind the NDP at 13.7 per cent. The Conservatives have 34.3 per cent support, while the Liberals sit at 31.4 per cent. That level of support would likely give the Greens five seats if an election were held today.
“The next step for Nickel Belt Greens will be to hold a nomination contest,” May said in the release. “We want to give existing members some time to get to know these three fantastic contestants – and to give potential new members a chance to sign up to support Ericha, Casey and Kris.
“With that in mind, the nomination committee is looking at holding a contest either right before, or right after Labour Day. For sure everyone will be hearing from the Green Party in Nickel Belt during this election period.”
