Saint John East

Once upon a time, a long time ago, unions in the city of Saint John were powerful and the New Democrats could push the Progressive Conservatives back to third place. In 2003 for example, Ralph Thomas (NDP) came in second place in the now defunct East riding of Saint John Champlain. Thomas managed to collect 29% of the popular vote. The redistribution hurt the NDP, but in 2010, Sandy Harding (NDP) won a 23% in Saint John East. But another redrawing of the electoral map in 2013 altered the riding again, forfeiting the Northern half to Portland-Simonds but absorbing a chunk of now defunct Saint John Fundy. The latest redraw should make it impossible for a third party to ever again play a major role; it’s strictly Liberal v. PC in Saint John East now. But that isn’t stopping the parties from trying!

Let’s begin with the long shots. The People’s Alliance offers up Jason Inness. Inness is a founding member of the PANB and a key policy advisor to party leader Kris Austin. Of the 49 ridings, PANB has thus far only placed 18 challengers on the board. Does Inness feel Saint John East is his best chance? He has worked on many campaigns as a disciple of Bernard Lord when he was a PC supporter. With the concentratioin of PC voters in the redraw, it is plausible that Inness is trying to steal the far-right PC vote away from the PC incumbent.

Sharon Murphy of the Green Party has a history of social justice. She is the founder of Peace-NB, an organization for the ethical treatment of senior citizens. She is a past director for other groups including the Conservation Council and Canadian Unitarians for Social Justice. But she has a difficult fight ahead of her. In 2010 the Greens only won 309 ballots in Saint John East.

Trying to relight the old Saint John East fire for the NDP is Phil Comeau. A distinguished paramedic who can say that he has won a Governor General’s award for Exemplary Service. He is on the Paramedics Association board of directors and was one of the people who campaigned for Advanced Care Paramedics to practice in the province. Naturally, Comeau is interested in New Brunswick’s healthcare system and how it must be improved to meet the province’s needs.

The main event. The center ring. Liberal Gary Keating takes on PC incumbent Glen Savoie. Keating has the privilege of being a well-loved high school principal who has educated early every East sider for the past 28 years. The sheer number of voters to have come under Keating’s tutelage is innumerable. Savoie is counting on his buisness contacts and the aging population of the lower East side to overcome the principal’s student nation.

Savoie is secretary to the Minister on Economic Development and is responsible for business development. As such, he is positioned to benefit from deep pockets from grateful entrepreneurs. So we have it, the classic battle of money versus people. Will the warchest of the PC defeat the people campaign of Gary Keating?

Kent North and Kent South

It’s a full house in both Kent ridings! The highly contested ridings will see members of all 5 parties battle it out for two seats. The earliest sign of an interestig showdown came during the 2013 redrawing of the electoral map when Kent merged with Kent South and set two incumbents against one another; PC Claude Williams and Liberal leader Brian Gallant.

Gallant’s biggest criticism at that time was that his youth and inexperience was just too big a problem to ignore for the leader of the then-crippled party. Adversely, Williams is a seasoned statesman having held cabinet positions including Minister of Education and Minister of Transportation. Needless to say, Gallant abandoned the high-risk fight and moved his candidacy to Shediac Bay-Dieppe.

Now Williams finds himself in a five person battle royale against Benoit Bourque (L), Paul Musgrave (NDP), Tina Beers (G), and Joel MacIntosh (PANB). Bourque has spent much of his adult life working in the international sector and has jet set to nearly thirty countries. How important is international relations at the provincial level? Bourque believes it is totally invaluable. Musgrave comes to NB from British Columbia where he ran for office under the BCGreen banner. Beers is actually one of the NB Green’s most interesting candidates; the wife of a retired soldier (she has been all over the world as her husband has been stationed and restationed), she is Chair of the Local Service District of Harcourt, a Community Coordinator for United Way, President of the Kent Community Inclusion Network, and is a founding member of the Kent Food Security Network. MacIntosh is a volunteer firefighter and also member of several community organizations.

The returns from the last election in Kent South (and Kent), in conjuction with the latest polling numbers would indicate a two way race here between Williams and Bourque. But the community participation and personal popularity of both the Green and PANB candidates should be considered. This year may see a sudden increase in ballots for at least the Green Party in Kent South.

Kent North, another pile up of candidates will see Liberal incumbent Bertrand LeBlanc defending against Nancy Blanchard (PC), Allan Marsh (NDP), Rebeka Frazer-Chiasson (G), and Josie Rivard (PANB). Rivard wants to “take back our democracy” with a combination of free votes and fiscal conservatism. Frazer-Chiasson, like all Greens this year is very concerned about and involved with food sovereignty. She is a member of the National Farmers Union and sits on the board of directors of the Conservation Council NB. Marsh is a hobby farmer, Chairman of the Local Service District, involved with Tri-County Search and Rescue, and Our Environmen, Our Choice. Most interestingly, Marsh was one of the demonstrators at the Rexton Anti-Shale Gas Protest in 2013. Marsh was credited for his level-headedness during the events and gave many interviews to the press, elaborating on the fears and concerns of those involved. Blanchard, the PC, is a successful buisness manager and local singer who feels the collective voice of Kent North hasn’t been heard by MLA LeBlanc. Kent North has some very right wing views and this may give the PANB an edge to steal some support from Blanchard’s PC base, giving LeBlanc an edge over the Right. But Marsh and Frazer-Chiasson are both strong Leftist candidates as well. Kent North could very well be an interesting riding to watch.