Riding Associations Scramble To Nail Down Candidates For Potential Elections

Jeff Green | Sep 25, 2024

There is no certainty, but the possibility of a federal or provincial election, as soon as this fall, has started the fire under the New Democratic Party Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston riding association.

Dennis Riggs, Vice President of the association said that the riding executive has been on a recruitment drive to find a provincial candidate, based on speculation that Ontario Premier Doug Ford might call an election as early as this fall.

And Riggs said that the association has had success. A candidate has submitted their name to the provincial party for vetting. Candidates for the New Democrats, and the Liberal and Conservative parties and perhaps others as well, must be vetted centrally before they can run for selection at a candidate selection meeting that is run by the local association.

Riggs said that the association is expecting to hear back shortly, and will be able to call a meeting to put the name, and the name of any other candidate who contacts them soon (and would need to be vetted as well).

“There is a chance, however, that once this person is approved, which I expect will happen, they will be the only eligible candidate seeking selection at our meeting,” Riggs said, “and they will be acclaimed”.

Because of the way riding redistribution takes place, and all of the timing that is involved, the next Ontario election will be that last one to be conducted using the Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston riding, which has officially been eliminated in the federal system.

The next federal election will include the smaller Lanark-Kingston riding.

“We have been thinking about shifting gears and beginning to look for a federal candidate,” said Riggs, “and we might see if the provincial candidate is willing to run federally as well.”

The same association is overseeing the provincial and federal parties, even though the boundaries are not identical.

In the 2022 provincial election, Drew Cumpson was the NDP candidate, and he finished second to Conservative John Jordan. Cumpson received 20.6% of the vote. MPP Jordan received 50.2%, the Liberal candidate Amanda Pulker-Mok received 15.9%, and Green Party candidate Dr. Marlene Spruyt 6.8%.

Riggs said that the changes to the riding that will be in place federally next time around, will make the NDP less competitive in the riding.

“We won a few of the polls in rural Kingston last time, but Lanark and Frontenac County are tougher for us,” he said.

In the 2021 federal election, Scott Reid won the riding for the Conservative Party with 48.9% of the vote, Liberal Michelle Foxton (who is running again whenever a federal election is triggered) was second with 26.4%, NDP candidate Steve Garrison was third with 15.6%, People's Party candidate Florian Bors received 6.1%, and Green Party candidate Calvin Neufeld 2.6%.

Dennis Riggs said NDP Lanark-Kingston Association will let the Frontenac News know when a candidate selection meeting is scheduled.

The News has attempted to learn whether the local Green Party is working on finding candidates to run federally and/or provincially.

The Federal Liberal candidate is Michele Foxton and the provincial Liberal candidate is Rob Rainer.

The News has not contacted the provincial or federal Conservative Parties to see if MPP John Jordan is planning to run for a second term or if MP Scott Reid is planning to seek a 9th term.