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Green Party Leader Elizabeth May confident seat count will grow

Normally on the first weekend of July, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May would be front-and-centre at the opening of the Calgary Stampede.
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Green Party Leader Elizabeth May (right) is joined on Friday night at the Thunder Bay Blues Festival by local candidates Christy Radbourne and Bruce Hyer. (Leith Dunick, tbnewswatch.com)

Normally on the first weekend of July, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May would be front-and-centre at the opening of the Calgary Stampede.

This year she decided to put it off a week and instead stopped by the Thunder Bay Blues Festival on Friday night, at the behest of local candidates Bruce Hyer – the only other Green Party legislator in the House of Commons – and south-side candidate Christy Radbourne.

“I think it’s brilliant. You can’t beat the location, right here on Lake Superior,” said May, whose party paid a sponsorship fee to be on site at the 14th annual festival.

“It’s a beautiful day and great music.”

With federal election in the offing, just three months down the road, May’s presence was a sign she thinks Hyer – who left the NDP and eventually joined the Greens after sitting as an independent MP for several months – has a chance to retain the seat.

“We’re going to grow,” May said. “You know, I’m not someone like (NDP Leader) Tom Mulcair and going to come in here and guarantee how people in this riding are going to vote. But I do hope the citizens of Thunder Bay-Superior North think about the qualities, integrity, honesty and the hard work of Bruce Hyer.

May has long been clear the Green Party does not whip votes, allowing members to vote with their conscience and the best interests of their constituents in mind.

Hyer ran afoul of the NDP early in his latest term, refusing to vote against the long-run registry as dictated by party leaders.

“We don’t give orders. The job of a Member of Parliament is to work for their constituents,” May said, moments before briefly addressing the Blues Festival crowd from the stage, Hyer and Radbourne at her side.

May, who believes the Green Party could hold the balance of power in a minority government after the next election, said Northern Ontario has been ignored too long by the powers that be.

She promised things would be different if she holds any sway in the next Parliament.

“There is a sense that in a resource-rich economy, in areas that are not the major downtown media hubs, that your concerns get overlooked,” May said, praising Hyer’s efforts again.

Forestry, minining – the Ring of Fire in particular – First Nations, business and tourism are areas the Green Party plan to focus on going forward, she promised.

“We’re really the party that wants to be the party for small business,” May said. “And when you look at who the job creators are in this region of Northern Ontario, it’s small business.”



Leith Dunick

About the Author: Leith Dunick

A proud Nova Scotian who has called Thunder Bay home since 2002, Leith is Dougall Media's director of news, but still likes to tell your stories too. Wants his Expos back and to see Neil Young at least one more time. Twitter: @LeithDunick
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