Steve Willcott
Encyclopedia
The New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

ran a full slate of candidates in the 2004 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

, and elected nineteen members to become the fourth largest party in the legislature. Many of the party's candidate have their own biography pages; information about others may be found here.

Samuel McLean (Bonavista—Exploits)

McLean lost to Scott Simms
Scott Simms
Scott Simms is a Canadian politician. He is the Liberal Member of Parliament for the Newfoundland and Labrador riding of Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor.-Early life:...

 of the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

. McLean received 2,667 votes to Simms's 15,970.

Holly Pike (Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte
Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte
Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 96.2% White, 3.4% Native Canadian...

)

Pike received 3,743 votes to Gerry Byrne
Gerry Byrne
Gerry Byrne, PC, MP is a Canadian politician. He currently represents the riding of Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte for the Liberal Party of Canada. He was re-elected in the 1997, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2011 elections...

's 17,820. She later served as Acting Principal at Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland
Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland
Grenfell Campus, formerly referred to as Sir Wilfred Grenfell College, is a Canadian liberal arts and science university located in Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador....

 in Corner Brook.

Shawn Crann (Labrador
Labrador (electoral district)
Labrador is a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949....

)

Crann lost to Lawrence O'Brien
Lawrence O'Brien
Lawrence David O'Brien was a Canadian politician.O’Brien represented Labrador in the Canadian House of Commons as a Liberal from 1996 until his death in 2004...

 of the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

. Crann received 856 votes to O'Brien's 5,524.

Janine Piller (St. John's North)

Piller lost to Norman Doyle
Norman Doyle
Norman E. Doyle, is a Canadian businessman and politician in Newfoundland and Labrador.Doyle was a member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly from 1979 to 1993. He was a Conservative Party of Canada Member of Parliament in the Canadian House of Commons. He represented the riding of...

 of the Conservative Party of Canada
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

. Piller received 7,198 votes to Doyle's 15,073.

Dave MacKinnon (Cardigan
Cardigan (electoral district)
Cardigan is a federal electoral district in Prince Edward Island, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 98.5% White, 1.1% Native Canadian...

)

Dave MacKinnon lost to Lawrence MacAulay
Lawrence MacAulay
Lawrence A. MacAulay, PC is a Canadian politician.MacAulay is a current member of the Liberal Party of Canada in the Canadian House of Commons, representing the riding of Cardigan, Prince Edward Island since 1988. MacAulay is a former farmer...

 of the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

. MacKinnon received 2,103 votes to MacAulay's 11,064.

Regena Kaye Russell (Egmont
Egmont (electoral district)
Egmont is a federal electoral district in Prince Edward Island, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968. Its population in 2001 was 35,208.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 98.0% White, 1.4% Native Canadian...

)

Regena Kaye Russell lost to Joe McGuire
Joe McGuire
Joseph Blair "Joe" McGuire, PC, MP is a retired Canadian politician. He was a Member of Parliament representing the Liberals in the House of Commons for the riding of Egmont in Prince Edward Island. He was first elected in 1988, and re-elected in 1993, 1997, 2000, 2004, and the recent 2006 election...

 of the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

. Russell received 2,133 votes to McGuire's 10,220.

Argenteuil—Mirabel: Elisabeth Clark

Elisabeth Clark, also known as Elizabeth Clark, has run for the New Democratic Party in three federal elections. She was a student at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...

 during her first campaign in 1997. Clark described herself as a research ethics officer in 2004.
Electoral record
Election Division Party Votes % Place Winner
1997 federal
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...

Rimouski—Mitis New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

479 1.30 4/4 Suzanne Tremblay
Suzanne Tremblay
Suzanne Tremblay is a politician from Quebec, Canada, and a member of the Bloc Québécois, a federal political party that promotes the independence of Quebec from Canada....

, Bloc Québécois
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...

2000 federal
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....

Beauharnois—Salaberry
Beauharnois—Salaberry
Beauharnois—Salaberry is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949.-Geography:...

New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

703 1.42 5/5 Serge Marcil
Serge Marcil
Serge Marcil, PC was an educator, administrator and politician in Quebec, Canada.After studying to be a teacher in Montreal, Marcil obtained work at various secondary schools as an administrator...

, Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

2004 federal
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

Argenteuil—Mirabel New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

1,493 3.04 5/7 Mario Laframboise
Mario Laframboise
Mario Laframboise is a Canadian politician. Laframboise served as mayor of Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix and Reeve of the Papineau MRC before getting into federal politics...

, Bloc Québécois
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...


Brome—Missisquoi
Brome—Missisquoi
Brome—Missisquoi is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1925...

: Piper Huggins

Piper Elizabeth Huggins studied political economics at Concordia University
Concordia University
Concordia University is a comprehensive Canadian public university located in Montreal, Quebec, one of the two universities in the city where English is the primary language of instruction...

. She worked for ten years an organizer and campaign director for the federal New Democratic Party in Quebec, and from 2006 to 2008 she was president of the party's Quebec section. She herself was a party candidate in 2000 and 2004.

Huggins was elected to the Le Plateau-Mont-Royal
Le Plateau-Mont-Royal
Le Plateau-Mont-Royal is a borough of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.The Plateau-Mont-Royal takes its name from its location on relatively flat terrain north of Sherbrooke Street and downtown, and east of Mont-Royal...

 borough council in the 2009 Montreal municipal election
Montreal municipal election, 2009
The city of Montreal, Quebec, held a municipal election at the same time as numerous other municipalities in Quebec, on November 1, 2009. Voters elected the Mayor of Montreal, Montreal City Council, and the mayors and councils of each of the city's boroughs....

 as a Projet Montréal
Projet Montréal
Projet Montréal is a municipal political party in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.-Origins:Projet Montréal is possibly the first party since the Montreal Citizens' Movement that was not specifically established to promote a mayoral candidacy. It was created by environmental activists in May...

 candidate. At the time of the election, she worked at the Centre for Research and Teaching on Women at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...

.
Electoral record
Election Division Party Votes % Place Winner
2000 federal
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....

Saint-Laurent—Cartierville
Saint-Laurent—Cartierville
Saint-Laurent—Cartierville is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2006 was 109,015.-Geography:...

New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

1,070 2.40 5/8 Stéphane Dion
Stéphane Dion
Stéphane Maurice Dion, PC, MP is a Canadian politician who has been the Member of Parliament for the riding of Saint-Laurent–Cartierville in Montreal since 1996. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and the Leader of the Opposition in the Canadian House of Commons from 2006 to 2008...

, Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

2004 federal
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

Brome—Missisquoi
Brome—Missisquoi
Brome—Missisquoi is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1925...

New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

1,177 2.66 5/5 Denis Paradis
Denis Paradis
Denis Paradis, PC is a politician and lawyer from the Canadian province of Quebec. He served in the Canadian House of Commons from 1995 to 2006 and was a minister in the governments of Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin...

, Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

2009 Montreal municipal
Montreal municipal election, 2009
The city of Montreal, Quebec, held a municipal election at the same time as numerous other municipalities in Quebec, on November 1, 2009. Voters elected the Mayor of Montreal, Montreal City Council, and the mayors and councils of each of the city's boroughs....

Le Plateau-Mont-Royal
Le Plateau-Mont-Royal
Le Plateau-Mont-Royal is a borough of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.The Plateau-Mont-Royal takes its name from its location on relatively flat terrain north of Sherbrooke Street and downtown, and east of Mont-Royal...

 borough council, Jeanne-Mance
Projet Montréal
Projet Montréal
Projet Montréal is a municipal political party in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.-Origins:Projet Montréal is possibly the first party since the Montreal Citizens' Movement that was not specifically established to promote a mayoral candidacy. It was created by environmental activists in May...

3,457 42.57 1/3 herself

Hull—Aylmer
Hull—Aylmer
Hull—Aylmer is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1917....

: Pierre Laliberté

Pierre Laliberté has been a teacher and member of the Quebec delegation at the University of Massachusetts
University of Massachusetts
This article relates to the statewide university system. For the flagship campus often referred to as "UMass", see University of Massachusetts Amherst...

, where he previously received a doctorate in economics. In 2001 he started working as chief economist for the Canadian Labour Congress
Canadian Labour Congress
The Canadian Labour Congress, or CLC is a national trade union centre, the central labour body in English Canada to which most Canadian labour unions are affiliated.- Formation :...

.

In this election he received 12,6% of the vote, finishing third and losing to Liberal incumbent Marcel Proulx
Marcel Proulx
Marcel Proulx is a Canadian politician.Proulx is a former member of the Liberal Party of Canada in the Canadian House of Commons, having represented the riding of Hull—Aylmer from 1999 to 2011. Proulx is a former administrator, businessman, claim adjuster, and executive assistant...

.

LaSalle—Émard
LaSalle—Émard
LaSalle—Émard is a federal electoral district in the Canadian province of Quebec that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2001 was 99,767. It is represented by New Democrat Hélène LeBlanc...

: Rebecca Blaikie

Rebecca Blaikie (born January 1, 1978 in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...

, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

) was the candidate for the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

 (NDP) in Prime Minister Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....

's electoral district of LaSalle—Émard
LaSalle—Émard
LaSalle—Émard is a federal electoral district in the Canadian province of Quebec that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2001 was 99,767. It is represented by New Democrat Hélène LeBlanc...

 in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

. She received 4.97% of the vote share, and was not elected. She did however receive a large amount of press coverage.

She is the daughter of Bill Blaikie
Bill Blaikie
William Alexander "Bill" Blaikie, PC is a Canadian politician. He has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba since April 2009, representing the Winnipeg division of Elmwood as a member of the New Democratic Party of Manitoba, and Minister of Conservation and Government House Leader...

, a veteran NDP Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 from Winnipeg, and current Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons.

She has a degree in Canadian social history from the University of Winnipeg
University of Winnipeg
The University of Winnipeg is a public university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and theology as well as graduate programs. The U of W's founding colleges were Manitoba College and Wesley College, which merged...

 and currently works for the NDP in Quebec.

Richelieu
Richelieu (electoral district)
Richelieu was a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1935.It was created by the British North America Act of 1867 and was amalgamated into the Richelieu—Verchères electoral district in 1933.In 1968, a new electoral district...

: Charles Bussières

Charles Bussières was raised in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

. He holds a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in Political Communications and has been a New Democratic Party candidate in two elections. As of 2009, he is provincial organizer of the federal NDP's Quebec section. He also works as a musician, under the name Charly Buss. He was part of a Montreal group called Zolof (who are not to be confused with the American group of the same name) in the 1990s and released a solo EP entitled Buss in 2002. The latter release included the song "Globalize This!".
Electoral record
Election Division Party Votes % Place Winner
2000 federal
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....

Verchères—Les Patriotes
Verchères—Les Patriotes
Verchères—Les Patriotes is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979.-Geography:...

New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

1,074 1.96 6/6 Stéphane Bergeron
Stéphane Bergeron
Stéphane Bergeron is a Canadian politician. He is the current Member of the National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Verchères....

, Bloc Québécois
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...

2004 federal
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

Richelieu
Richelieu (electoral district)
Richelieu was a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1935.It was created by the British North America Act of 1867 and was amalgamated into the Richelieu—Verchères electoral district in 1933.In 1968, a new electoral district...

New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

1,017 2.09 4/6 Louis Plamondon
Louis Plamondon
Louis Plamondon is a politician in the Canadian province of Quebec and the current interim parliamentary leader of the Bloc Québécois ....

, Bloc Québécois
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...


Kathy Pounder (Brampton—Springdale
Brampton—Springdale
Brampton—Springdale is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.-History:...

)

Pounder was born in Saint John
Saint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...

, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

, and was 53 years old in 2004. She holds a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in Sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...

 from the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...

, and a Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...

 degree in Community and Regional Planning from the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...

. She has worked as an urban planner for the Niagara Escarpment Commission and for municipal and regional governments. Pounder was previously a DaimlerChrysler
DaimlerChrysler
Daimler AG is a German car corporation. By unit sales, it is the thirteenth-largest car manufacturer and second-largest truck manufacturer in the world. In addition to automobiles, Daimler manufactures buses and provides financial services through its Daimler Financial Services arm...

 production worker, and a member of the Canadian Auto Workers
Canadian Auto Workers
The Canadian Auto Workers is one of Canada's largest and highest profile social unions. While rooted in Ontario's large auto plants of Windsor, Brampton, Oakville, St...

 Local 1285. A member of the Brampton
Brampton, Ontario
Brampton is the third-largest city in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada and the seat of Peel Region. As of the 2006 census, Brampton's population stood at 433,806, making it the 11th largest city in Canada. It is also one of Canada's fastest growing municipalities, with an average...

 Health Coalition, she has emphasized public health services in her political career.

She campaigned for the Ontario New Democratic Party
Ontario New Democratic Party
The Ontario New Democratic Party or , formally known as New Democratic Party of Ontario, is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. It is a provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party. It was formed in October 1961, a few months after the federal party. The ONDP had its...

 in Brampton Centre
Brampton Centre
Brampton Centre was a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1997 to 2004. This riding was created in 1996 from parts of Brampton riding....

 in the 2003 provincial election
Ontario general election, 2003
The Ontario general election of 2003 was held on October 2, 2003, to elect the 103 members of the 38th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

, and finished third against Liberal
Ontario Liberal Party
The Ontario Liberal Party is a provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. It has formed the Government of Ontario since the provincial election of 2003. The party is ideologically aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada but the two parties are organizationally independent and...

 Linda Jeffrey
Linda Jeffrey
Linda Jeffrey is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of Brampton—Springdale for the Ontario Liberal Party, and is the province's Minister of Natural Resources in the Liberal government of Premier Dalton...

.

During the 2004 campaign, Pounder received an unexpected endorsement from members of the Brampton—Springdale Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 riding association, which refused to endorse Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...

 Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....

's selection of Ruby Dhalla
Ruby Dhalla
Ruby Dhalla is a Canadian politician. She represented the riding of Brampton—Springdale in the Canadian House of Commons from 2004 to 2011 as a member of the Liberal Party...

 as the party's candidate (Globe and Mail, 8 June 2004). This endorsement received national attention, but had little affect on the final result: Pounder finished third with 8,038 votes (19.79%), while Dhalla won the riding handily.

Chris Moise (Brampton West
Brampton West
Brampton West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004. Its population was 170,422 in 2006- making it the most populous riding in Canada....

)

Moise has a degree in Law Enforcement from Seneca College
Seneca College
Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology is a Canadian public college in the greater Toronto area. Seneca College is currently Canada's largest college with approximately 108,000 students.-History:...

 (1992) and a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in Sociology and Political Science from the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...

 (1997). He has worked at St. Michael's Hospital
St. Michael's Hospital (Toronto)
St. Michael's Hospital is a teaching hospital and medical centre in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was established by the Sisters of St. Joseph in 1892, with the founding goal of taking care of the sick and poor of Toronto's inner city. The hospital provides tertiary and quaternary services...

 in Toronto as an addiction counsellor since 1993, and has volunteered with youth and homeless outreach programs in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 and Brampton
Brampton, Ontario
Brampton is the third-largest city in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada and the seat of Peel Region. As of the 2006 census, Brampton's population stood at 433,806, making it the 11th largest city in Canada. It is also one of Canada's fastest growing municipalities, with an average...

. Moise has been a union member since 1994, affiliated with the USWA and the Brewery Workers Unions and currently with SEIU through his work as a counsellor at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

.

After working on Marion Boyd
Marion Boyd
Marion Boyd is a former Canadian politician, who represented the riding of London Centre in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1999 as a member of the Ontario New Democratic Party.-Background:...

's successful re-election campaign in the 1995 provincial election
Ontario general election, 1995
The Ontario general election of 1995 was held on June 8, 1995, to elect members of the 36th Legislative Assembly of the province of Ontario, Canada...

, Moise ran as the Ontario New Democratic Party
Ontario New Democratic Party
The Ontario New Democratic Party or , formally known as New Democratic Party of Ontario, is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. It is a provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party. It was formed in October 1961, a few months after the federal party. The ONDP had its...

's candidate in Oak Ridges for the 1999 election
Ontario general election, 1999
An Ontario general election was held on June 3, 1999, to elect members of the 37th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

. The NDP have only a minor presence in this Greater Toronto Area
Greater Toronto Area
The Greater Toronto Area is the largest metropolitan area in Canada, with a 2006 census population of 5.5 million. The Greater Toronto Area is usually defined as the central city of Toronto, along with four regional municipalities surrounding it: Durham, Halton, Peel, and York...

 seat, and Moise finished third with 1,957 votes (3.86%). The winner was Frank Klees
Frank Klees
Frank Klees is a Canadian politician and the Progressive Conservative member of Provincial Parliament for the riding of Newmarket—Aurora north of Toronto. He was a candidate in the 2009 Progressive Conservative leadership election placing second behind victor Tim Hudak.-Early life:Klees was born...

 of the Progressive Conservative Party
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario , is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. The party was known for many years as "Ontario's natural governing party." It has ruled the province for 80 of the years since Confederation, including an uninterrupted run from 1943 to 1985...

.

Moise ran for the Ontario NDP again in the 2003 provincial election
Ontario general election, 2003
The Ontario general election of 2003 was held on October 2, 2003, to elect the 103 members of the 38th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

, in the riding of Brampton West—Mississauga
Brampton West—Mississauga
Brampton West—Mississauga was a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1997 to 2004...

. He finished third with 5,103 votes (8.15%). The winner was Vic Dhillon
Vic Dhillon
Vic Dhillon is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the constituency of Brampton West for the Ontario Liberal Party. Dhillon is one of the three Sikh Members of the Legislature, all of whom are members of the Liberal Party.-Early...

 of the Ontario Liberal Party
Ontario Liberal Party
The Ontario Liberal Party is a provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. It has formed the Government of Ontario since the provincial election of 2003. The party is ideologically aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada but the two parties are organizationally independent and...

.

Moise campaigned for the federal NDP in the 2004 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

 in the riding of Brampton West
Brampton West
Brampton West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004. Its population was 170,422 in 2006- making it the most populous riding in Canada....

. He again finished third with 4,920 votes (10.49%), losing to Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 Colleen Beaumier
Colleen Beaumier
Colleen Beaumier is a Canadian politician, who served in the Canadian House of Commons as a Liberal Member of Parliament from 1993 to 2008.-Pre-politics:...

.

He sought the NDP nomination for Toronto Centre
Toronto Centre
Toronto Centre is a federal electoral district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1872 to 1925, and since 1935, under the names Centre Toronto , Toronto Centre , Rosedale and Toronto Centre—Rosedale .Toronto Centre covers the heart of...

 for the next federal election, but lost to Michael Shapcott
Michael Shapcott
Michael Shapcott is a Canadian social activist and academic best known for his work on housing and anti-poverty issues in Toronto.Trained as a lawyer Shapcott came to public attention in the late 1980s and early 1990s for his work in BASIC which became the "Breads Not Circuses" coalition which...

.

Max Silverman (Eglinton—Lawrence
Eglinton—Lawrence
Eglinton—Lawrence is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979, and in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since 1999....

)

Silverman was eighteen years old at the time of the election, and was the youngest candidate anywhere in Canada. At age sixteen, he founded the organization Toronto Jewish Youth against the Occupation, which was affiliated with the Coalition for a Just Peace in Israel and opposed Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

's occupation of Palestine. Silverman attended the Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto
Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto
The Anne & Max Tanenbaum Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto , or "TanenbaumCHAT", is a secondary Jewish day school which is located on two campuses in the Greater Toronto Area in Canada.-Campuses:...

, and acknowledged that he was sometimes called a "self-hating Jew" for his efforts. He refused to change his views, arguing that peace in Israel would be impossible without a viable Palestinian state. In 2002, he helped organize a Canadian tour for Matan Kaminer, a nineteen-year-old Israeli soldier who refused to serve in the occupied territories. He later transferred to Northern Secondary School, arguing that his situation at Hebrew Academy had become untenable, and saying that anyone who strayed from the "party line" of "Israel is always right" was "branded an anti-Semite and traitor".

Silverman was also active with environmentalist groups in Toronto, including the Toronto Transit Commission
Toronto Transit Commission
-Island Ferry:The ferry service to the Toronto Islands was operated by the TTC from 1927 until 1962, when it was transferred to the Metro Parks and Culture department. Since 1998, the ferry service is run by Toronto Parks and Recreation.-Gray Coach:...

 advocacy group "Rocket Riders". He wrote a tribute piece for well-known Toronto activist Tooker Gomberg
Tooker Gomberg
Tooker Gomberg was a Canadian politician and environmental activist.A native of Montreal, Quebec and a liberal-arts graduate of Hampshire College , Gomberg founded one of Canada's first curbside recycling programs in Montreal, and later moved to Edmonton, Alberta, where he created educational...

 in 2004, following Gomberg's suicide. He enrolled at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...

 after the election, and as of 2006 is the Vice-President External of the Students' Society of McGill University
Students' Society of McGill University
The Students' Society of McGill University is the accredited representative of the undergraduate student body at the downtown campus of McGill University.-Membership:...

.

Silverman received 4,886 votes (10.38%), finishing third against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 incumbent Joe Volpe
Joe Volpe
Giuseppe Joseph "Joe" Volpe, PC, was a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1988 until the 2011 federal election, being surpassed by the conservative member Joe Oliver Joe Oliver, and held two senior positions in Prime Minister Paul Martin's Cabinet...

.

Cesar Martello (Etobicoke North
Etobicoke North
Etobicoke North is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979. It covers Rexdale, the northern part of Etobicoke, which is part of Toronto....

)

Martello is a student at York University
York University
York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....

, and a member of the Canadian Federation of Students
Canadian Federation of Students
The Canadian Federation of Students is the largest student organization in Canada. Founded in 1981, the stated goal of the CFS is to work at the federal level for high quality, accessible post-secondary education.-Structure:...

. He served briefly in the Senate of York University, attending only one meeting. He has also served as director of public relations for his student council.

Martello campaigned as a member of the Ontario New Democratic Party
Ontario New Democratic Party
The Ontario New Democratic Party or , formally known as New Democratic Party of Ontario, is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. It is a provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party. It was formed in October 1961, a few months after the federal party. The ONDP had its...

 in the 2003 provincial election
Ontario general election, 2003
The Ontario general election of 2003 was held on October 2, 2003, to elect the 103 members of the 38th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

, in the Greater Toronto Area
Greater Toronto Area
The Greater Toronto Area is the largest metropolitan area in Canada, with a 2006 census population of 5.5 million. The Greater Toronto Area is usually defined as the central city of Toronto, along with four regional municipalities surrounding it: Durham, Halton, Peel, and York...

 constituency of Bramalea—Gore—Malton—Springdale. He finished third, with 4,931 votes (11.65%). The winner was Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 candidate Kuldip Singh Kular.

In the 2004 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

, Martello ran for the federal NDP in the Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 riding of Etobicoke North
Etobicoke North
Etobicoke North is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979. It covers Rexdale, the northern part of Etobicoke, which is part of Toronto....

. He again finished third with 3,761 votes (12.24%). He also ran in Bramalea—Gore—Malton
Bramalea—Gore—Malton
Bramalea—Gore—Malton is a federal and provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that is represented in the Canadian House of Commons....

 in the 2006 election
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...

.

Ross Sutherland (Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004....

)

Sutherland holds a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree from Queen's University, and a Bachelor of Nursing degree from Ryerson University
Ryerson University
Ryerson University is a public research university located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its urban campus is adjacent to Yonge-Dundas Square located at the busiest intersection in Downtown Toronto. The majority of its buildings are in the blocks northeast of the square in Toronto's Garden...

. He is a registered nurse, teaches nursing at Queen's, and works at the Hotel Dieu Hospital (Kingston)
Hotel Dieu Hospital (Kingston)
Hotel Dieu Hospital is a hospital in Kingston, Ontario. It is affiliated with Queen's University, and is a partner within Kingston's university hospitals, delivering health care, conducting research and training the health care professionals.-History:...

. Sutherland is active with the Ontario Nurses Association, and is the author of "Scanning for Profit", a critical survey of private MRI and CT clinics.

He is co-chair of the Kingston and Area Health Coalition, and has written for the Progressive Independent Community Press. Sutherland was 51 years old in 2004. Long active in the labour movement, he was an organizer for the International Ladies Garment Workers Union during the 1980s (Toronto Star, 17 January 1986).

Sutherland is the son of Ralph Sutherland, who was also an NDP candidate. He joined the Ottawa West
Ottawa West
Ottawa West was a federal and provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1935 to 1997 and in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1908 to 1926 and from 1955 to 1999. It covered the western part of the Ottawa area.-Federal...

 New Democratic Youth in 1967, and campaigned for future provincial party leader Michael Cassidy
Michael Cassidy
Michael Morris Cassidy is a Canadian politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1971 to 1984, and in the Canadian House of Commons from 1984 to 1988...

 in the 1967 Ontario election
Ontario general election, 1967
The Ontario general election of 1967 was held on October 17, 1967, to elect the 117 members of the 28th Legislative Assembly of Ontario of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

. Sutherland was himself a candidate of the Ontario New Democratic Party
Ontario New Democratic Party
The Ontario New Democratic Party or , formally known as New Democratic Party of Ontario, is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. It is a provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party. It was formed in October 1961, a few months after the federal party. The ONDP had its...

 for the 2003 election
Ontario general election, 2003
The Ontario general election of 2003 was held on October 2, 2003, to elect the 103 members of the 38th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

 in Hastings—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Hastings—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Hastings—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington was a federal and provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1984 to 2003, and in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1999 to 2007.-Description:...

, and finished third against Liberal
Ontario Liberal Party
The Ontario Liberal Party is a provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. It has formed the Government of Ontario since the provincial election of 2003. The party is ideologically aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada but the two parties are organizationally independent and...

 incumbent Leona Dombrowsky
Leona Dombrowsky
Leona Dombrowsky is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario representing the riding of Prince Edward—Hastings, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Premier Dalton McGuinty....

.

He received 7,418 votes (13.12%) in 2004, finishing third against Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 candidate Scott Reid
Scott Reid (politician)
Scott Jeffrey Reid is a Canadian politician. He has served in the Canadian House of Commons since 2000, and currently represents the Ontario riding of Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington as a member of the Conservative Party....

. In 2005, Sutherland helped to organize clinics in Kingston and Belleville
Belleville, Ontario
Belleville is a city located at the mouth of the Moira River on the Bay of Quinte in Southern Ontario, Canada, in the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor. It is the seat of Hastings County, but is politically independent of it. and the centre of the Bay of Quinte Region...

 to allow poor individuals to receive extra food allowances.

Nella Cotrupi (Richmond Hill
Richmond Hill (electoral district)
Richmond Hill is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.It was created in 2003 from parts of Oak Ridges riding.-Geography:...

)

Ted Mouradian (St. Catharines
St. Catharines (electoral district)
St. Catharines is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.It consists of the part of the City of St. Catharines lying north of a line drawn from west to east along St. Paul Street West, St...

)

Mouradian has a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in Sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...

 from Brock University
Brock University
Brock University is a comprehensive university located in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Brock offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree programs that include co-op and other experiential learning opportunities to an enrolment of over 17,000 full-time students.The enabling legislation is...

. He worked in the real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...

 business during the 1980s, but left in 1986 to become a professional speaker. He has delivered addresses with titles such as "Life's Too Short", "It's O.K. To Be Me", "Service With A Smile" and "Don't Be A Listless Lister". Many of his addresses are educational works about public speaking. Mouradian is past-president and an honorary life member of the Ontario Real Estate Association, and has chaired the mayor's committee on Community and Race Relations. He is a past director of the downtown YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...

 and AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...

 Niagara.

He is nicknamed "the camel
Camel
A camel is an even-toed ungulate within the genus Camelus, bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as humps on its back. There are two species of camels: the dromedary or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the bactrian has two humps. Dromedaries are native to the dry desert areas of West Asia,...

 man" and has often described the camel as his favourite animal. He has said, "When all the other beasts of burden fall by the wayside and they don't finish the job, the camel's the only creature that starts the job and finishes; no matter how bad the weather is, how tough the terrain is, the camel is always reliable. That's the first thing we should be as human beings - reliable". (Toronto Star, 25 February 1992)

Mouradian is openly gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....

, and has long been involved in issues relating to Canada's LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...

 community. In 1992, he registered a complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Commission
Ontario Human Rights Commission
The Ontario Human Rights Commission was established in the Canadian province of Ontario on March 29, 1961 to administer the Ontario Human Rights Code...

 about homophobic remarks made by a Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...

 city councillor. (Hamilton Spectator, 25 November 1992). In 2000, he supported the supported a decision by the Canadian Supreme Court to recognize same-sex couples as common-law spouses (Globe and Mail, 18 March 2000). Mouradian later spoke out in favour of same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage in Canada
On July 20, 2005, Canada became the fourth country in the world and the first country in the Americas to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide with the enactment of the Civil Marriage Act which provided a gender-neutral marriage definition...

, which was legalized in Canada in 2005.

He received 10,135 votes (19.26%), finishing third against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 incumbent Walt Lastewka
Walt Lastewka
Walter Thomas "Walt" Lastewka, PC is a Canadian politician. He was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2006, representing the Ontario riding of St...

.

In late 2005, Mouradian encouraged voters in St. Catharines to support Lastewka rather than NDP candidate Jeff Burch in the 2006 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...

. His argument is that the NDP has no chance of taking the riding, and that progressive voters should vote Liberal to keep a Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 candidate from winning. Mouradian opposes the Conservative Party's policy of revisiting the issue of same-sex marriage (Canadian Press, 21 December 2005).

Colin Mackinnon (Simcoe—Grey
Simcoe—Grey
Simcoe—Grey is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.It was created in 1996 from parts of Barrie—Simcoe—Bradford, Bruce—Grey, Simcoe Centre, Simcoe North, Wellington—Grey—Dufferin—Simcoe and York—Simcoe.It consists of...

)

Mackinnon was born in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, where he served as a city councillor. He arrived in Canada in 1966, and moved to Wasaga Beach
Wasaga Beach, Ontario
Wasaga Beach is a town in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is a popular four-season tourist destination situated on Nottawasaga Bay at the southern end of Georgian Bay approximately two hours north of Toronto, and abuts, to the west, the town of Collingwood...

 in 1989. He is a chartered accountant by profession. Mackinnon received 5,532 votes (9.99%), finishing third against Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 Helena Guergis
Helena Guergis
Helena C. Guergis, PC, is a Canadian politician. She has represented Simcoe—Grey in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004, and was appointed Minister of State on October 30, 2008, following the October 14, 2008 Canadian federal election...

.

Elaine MacDonald (Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry
Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry
Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.Its population in 2001 was 98,933.-Geography:...

)

Elaine MacDonald is a high school teacher and community activist living in Cornwall
Cornwall, Ontario
Cornwall is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada and the seat of the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, Ontario. Cornwall is Ontario's easternmost city, located on the St...

, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. She taught at Saint Lawrence High School, which in 2002 became Saint Lawrence Intermediate School. Many of her classes involved computers.

She was the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

 candidate in the Eastern Ontario
Eastern Ontario
Eastern Ontario is a subregion of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies in a wedge-shaped area between the Ottawa River and St. Lawrence River...

 riding of Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry
Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry
Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.Its population in 2001 was 98,933.-Geography:...

 for the 2004
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

 and 2006
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...

 federal elections.

She is the mother of rock musician and writer Maggie MacDonald
Maggie MacDonald
Maggie MacDonald is a writer, playwright and musician who lives in Toronto, Ontario.-Early life and education:MacDonald grew up in Cornwall, Ontario, where she became active in the local independent rock music scene. She put on shows and creating a fanzine called Saucy, which gained attention...

.

Maret Sadem-Thompson (Whitby—Oshawa
Whitby—Oshawa
Whitby—Oshawa is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004.It has been represented in the House of Commons since 2006 by Jim Flaherty, the federal Minister of Finance.-History:...

)

Sadet-Thompson received 8,002 votes (14.05%), finishing third against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 incumbent Judi Longfield.

Rick Morelli (Willowdale
Willowdale (electoral district)
Willowdale is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979.The riding was created in 1976 from part of Eglinton....

)

Morelli was elected to the Metro Toronto Separate School Board in the 1988 municipal election
Toronto municipal election, 1988
The 1988 Toronto municipal election was held to elect members of municipal councils, school boards, and hydro commissions in the six municipalities that made up Metropolitan Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The election was held November 14, 1988.-Metro:...

, succeeding fellow New Democrat Anthony Perruzza
Anthony Perruzza
Anthony Perruzza is a politician in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He was a city councillor in North York from 1988 to 1990, and served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1995 as a member of the New Democratic Party...

 in Ward Fifteen. A newspaper report from the period lists him as a 22-year-old student at York University
York University
York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....

. His primary campaign issues were overcrowding and substance abuse in the school system. Campaigning for re-election in 1991
Toronto municipal election, 1991
The 1991 Toronto municipal election was held on November 12, 1991 to elect councillors in Metropolitan Toronto, Canada, and mayors, councillors and school trustees in Toronto, York, East York, North York, Scarborough and Etobicoke....

, he called for equal funding between public and separate schools and sought to remove the education component from property taxes. He lost to the Rev. Giuseppe Sbrocchi. He later worked as an assistant to provincial cabinet minister Tony Silipo
Tony Silipo
Tony Silipo is a former Canadian politician.Silipo was educated at the University of Toronto and Osgoode Hall at York University, and began practising law in 1984...

 and Metro Toronto councillor Maria Augimeri
Maria Augimeri
Maria Augimeri is a city councillor in Toronto, Ward 9 representing one of the two York Centre wards.-Background:Augimeri moved to Canada with her family at age two. Before entering politics, she was a Social Anthropologist at York University...

.

Morelli received 3,671 votes in 2004, finishing third against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 candidate Susan Kadis
Susan Kadis
Susan R. Kadis is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She was the Liberal Member of Parliament for Thornhill in the Canadian House of Commons from 2004 to 2008.-Background:...

.

Mike G. Abbey (Brandon—Souris
Brandon—Souris
Brandon—Souris is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953.-Demographics:-Geography:The district is in the southwestern corner of the Province of Manitoba...

)

Mike G. Abbey (born May 25, 1960) is a government employee and politician in Brandon
Brandon, Manitoba
Brandon is the second largest city in Manitoba, Canada, and is located in the southwestern area of the province. Brandon is the largest city in the Westman region of Manitoba. The city is located along the Assiniboine River. Spruce Woods Provincial Park and CFB Shilo are a relatively short distance...

, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. In the federal election of 2004, he was a candidate of the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

 in the southwestern Manitoba riding of Brandon—Souris
Brandon—Souris
Brandon—Souris is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1953.-Demographics:-Geography:The district is in the southwestern corner of the Province of Manitoba...

.

Abbey has a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree from Brandon University
Brandon University
Brandon University is a Canadian university located in the city of Brandon, Manitoba, with an enrolment of 3383 full-time and part-time students. The current location was founded on July 13, 1899, as Brandon College as a Baptist institution. It was chartered as a university by then President Dr....

, majoring in history, and minoring in administrative studies. He also has diploma in business administration from Assiniboine Community College
Assiniboine Community College
Assiniboine Community College is an accredited college with the Government of Manitoba Council on Post-Secondary Education. ACC offers over 30 programs in the fields of agriculture, environment, business, health and human services and trades and technology...

. He has worked for the province of Manitoba since 1986. He works in the Department of Education and Training.

Abbey is Past President of the Brandon Youth Soccer Association and a member of the Manitoba Heritage Grants Advisory Council. He is Past Chairperson of the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation. He currently sits as Treasurer
of the Brandon University Board of Governors.

Abbey is a father of two children and also co-owns a small business along with his wife.

Abbey is a longtime supporter of the NDP, and has held numerous position on the provincial NDP riding association in Brandon East (which has continuously elected New Democrats to the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba
Legislative Assembly of Manitoba
The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba and the lieutenant governor form the Legislature of Manitoba, the legislature of the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly in provincial general elections, all in single-member constituencies with first-past-the-post...

 since 1969). His own campaign, however, was not successful. The federal NDP does not have a strong base in the region; he received 6,740 votes, or about 19% of the total cast.

He ran for mayor of Brandon, Manitoba
Brandon, Manitoba
Brandon is the second largest city in Manitoba, Canada, and is located in the southwestern area of the province. Brandon is the largest city in the Westman region of Manitoba. The city is located along the Assiniboine River. Spruce Woods Provincial Park and CFB Shilo are a relatively short distance...

 in the Manitoba municipal elections, 2006
Manitoba municipal elections, 2006
-Brandon:*Jeff Harwood is a teacher in Brandon. He was a councillor for the city's second ward in the 1980s, and represented Brandon before the Royal Commission on National Passenger Transportation in 1990. Following the events of September 11, 2001, Harwood wrote a piece supporting increased...

 and finished in second place.

Peter Carney (Charleswood—St. James)

Carney was born in Dunrea, but has lived in Winnipeg since 1962. He received a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree from the University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...

 in 1966, a Bachelor of Education
Bachelor of Education
A Bachelor of Education is an undergraduate academic degree which qualifies the graduate as a teacher in schools.-North America:...

 degree in 1968, and a Master of Education
Master of Education
The Master of Education is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in a large number of countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum and instruction, counseling, and administration. It is often conferred for educators advancing in...

 degree in 1979. He returned to academia in the 1990s via continuing education, and received a Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...

 degree from the University of Winnipeg
University of Winnipeg
The University of Winnipeg is a public university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and theology as well as graduate programs. The U of W's founding colleges were Manitoba College and Wesley College, which merged...

 in 1998.

Carney worked as a teacher and school principal in the St. James-Assiniboia school district from 1966 to 1997, and was a board member of CancerCare Manitoba from 1986 to 1988. He was appointed to the University of Winnipeg Board of Regents in December 2002 (Winnipeg Free Press, 10 December 2002).

Carney has been a New Democratic Party supporter since 1970, and an active member since 1993. He chaired MaryAnn Mihychuk
MaryAnn Mihychuk
MaryAnn Mihychuk is a former politician from Manitoba, Canada. She was a cabinet minister in the government of New Democratic Premier Gary Doer from 1999 to 2004...

's campaign in the 1995 provincial election
Manitoba general election, 1995
The Manitoba general election of April 25,1995 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the Progressive Conservative Party, which won 31 seats out of 57...

, and was himself a candidate in the 1997 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...

. He campaigned in St. Boniface
Saint Boniface (electoral district)
Saint Boniface is a federal electoral district that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1925. It is located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.In 1996, its English name was changed from "St. Boniface" to "Saint Boniface"....

, and finished second against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 Ron Duhamel
Ron Duhamel
Ronald J. Duhamel, PC was a Canadian Member of Parliament and Senator.Born in Saint Boniface, Manitoba, he obtained a Bachelor of Arts from Lakehead University and a Master of Arts and Ph.D. from the University of Toronto...

.

He was narrowly defeated for a school trustee position on the St. James—Assiniboia board in 1998, finishing fourth in a three-member division (Winnipeg Free Press, 29 October 1998). One of the elected members subsequently died, and Carney won a close by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....

 in February 1999 to succeed him (Winnipeg Free Press, 8 February 1999). He was re-elected in 2002.
Electoral record
Election Division Party Votes % Place Winner
1997 federal
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...

St. Boniface New Democratic Party 6,663 2/5 Ronald J. Duhamel, Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

2004 federal
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...

Charleswood—St. James New Democratic Party 4,283 10.15 3/6 Steven Fletcher
Steven Fletcher
Steven John Fletcher, PC, MP is a Canadian politician. He has served in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004, representing the riding of Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia as a member of the Conservative Party. He is the first quadriplegic to serve in the House of Commons, as well as in Cabinet...

, Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...


Daren Van Den Bussche (Portage—Lisgar
Portage—Lisgar
Portage—Lisgar is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997.-Demographics:-Geography:...

)

Van Den Bussche received 3,251 votes (9.34%), finishing third against Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 incumbent Brian Pallister
Brian Pallister
Brian William Pallister is a Canadian politician. He represented the riding of Portage—Lisgar in the Canadian House of Commons from 2000 to 2008. He previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1992 to 1997, and was a cabinet minister in the provincial government of Gary Filmon...

. See his entry here
New Democratic Party candidates, 2006 Canadian federal election
The New Democratic Party fielded a full slate of 308 candidates in the 2006 Canadian federal election. It won 29 seats in the election to remain the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons...

 for more information.

Sarah Zaharia (Provencher
Provencher (electoral district)
Provencher is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1871. It is largely a rural district, the largest community being the city of Steinbach, Manitoba.-Demographics:-History:...

)

Zaharia was a twenty-year-old student at the University of Winnipeg
University of Winnipeg
The University of Winnipeg is a public university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and theology as well as graduate programs. The U of W's founding colleges were Manitoba College and Wesley College, which merged...

 during the election. In addition to campaigning in Provencher, she also managed the campaign of Mathieu Allard in St. Boniface, where she resided (Winnipeg Free Press, 26 May 2004). The NDP did not target Provencher as winnable, and Zaharia acknowledged that she was running partly for the campaign experience. She was unable to do much campaigning in the riding (WFP, 8 June 2004).

Zaharia received 3,244 votes (9.01%), finishing third against Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 incumbent Vic Toews
Vic Toews
Victor "Vic" Toews, PC QC MP is a Canadian politician. He has represented Provencher in the Canadian House of Commons since 2000, and currently serves in the cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper as Minister of Public Safety. He previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from...

.

Duane Nicol (Selkirk—Interlake
Selkirk—Interlake
Selkirk—Interlake is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1976 to 1987, and since 1997....

)

Nicol (born May 26, 1978) is a young politician in Manitoba. He has campaigned for the Canadian House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

 on two occasions and is now a city councillor in Selkirk
Selkirk, Manitoba
Selkirk is a city in the western Canadian province of Manitoba, located about 22 km northeast of the provincial capital Winnipeg on the Red River, near . As of the 2006 census, Selkirk had a population of 9,515....

, where he was born and raised.

Nicol initially enrolled for an Engineering program at the University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...

, but changed his major to Political Science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...

 after a year and received an honours degree in 2003. He campaigned for the New Democratic party in Winnipeg South
Winnipeg South
Winnipeg South is a Canadian federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1917 to 1979, and since 1988. It covers the south of the city of Winnipeg...

 in the 2000 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....

, and received 4,224 votes (10.04%) for a third-place finish against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 incumbent Reg Alcock
Reg Alcock
Reginald B. Alcock, PC was a Canadian politician. He represented the riding of Winnipeg South in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2006 and was a cabinet minister in the government of Prime Minister Paul Martin. Alcock was a member of the Liberal Party of Canada.-Early life and...

. He was chair of the University of Manitoba Student Union during the election (Winnipeg Free Press, 21 November 2000).

He was appointed to the Interlake Regional Health Authority in 2001 by provincial Health Minister Dave Chomiak, and served as chair of the planning committee. He was later elected to Selkirk's city council in the 2002 municipal election, finishing fifth in the town's single "at-large" district (the top six candidates were declared elected). Nicol is the youngest councillor ever elected in the city.

He worked for provincial New Democrats
New Democratic Party of Manitoba
The New Democratic Party of Manitoba is a social-democratic political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is the provincial wing of the federal New Democratic Party, and is a successor to the Manitoba Co-operative Commonwealth Federation...

 Peter Bjornson
Peter Bjornson
Peter Bjornson is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He is currently a cabinet minister in the government of New Democratic Premier Greg Selinger....

 and Greg Dewar in the 2003 Manitoba provincial election
Manitoba general election, 2003
The Manitoba general election held on June 3, 2003 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the New Democratic Party, which won 35 seats out of 57. The Progressive Conservative Party finished second with twenty seats...

, and also assisted Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

 Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) Marilyn Churley in the Ontario election
Ontario general election, 2003
The Ontario general election of 2003 was held on October 2, 2003, to elect the 103 members of the 38th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

 the same year. Nicol voted against the New Policy Initiative proposal for the NDP in 2001, and endorsed Bill Blaikie
Bill Blaikie
William Alexander "Bill" Blaikie, PC is a Canadian politician. He has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba since April 2009, representing the Winnipeg division of Elmwood as a member of the New Democratic Party of Manitoba, and Minister of Conservation and Government House Leader...

 for NDP leader in 2002-03. He won the NDP nomination in 2004 over Chris Pawley, the son of former Premier of Manitoba
Premier of Manitoba
The Premier of Manitoba is the first minister for the Canadian province of Manitoba. He or she is the province's head of government and de facto chief executive. Until the early 1970s, the title "Prime Minister of Manitoba" was used frequently. Afterwards, the word Premier, derived from the French...

 Howard Pawley
Howard Pawley
Howard Russell Pawley, PC, OC, OM is a Canadian politician and professor who was the 18th Premier of Manitoba from 1981 to 1988.-Personal life:...

 (National Post, 8 May 2004), and received 10,516 votes (26.5%) in the general election for a second-place finish against James Bezan
James Bezan
James Bezan is a Canadian politician. In 2004, he was elected to the Canadian House of Commons as a Conservative....

 of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

.

Nicol has written several essays on Canada's political system, including one piece from 2003 entitled "Turning Politics on its Head". This work criticized the modern approach of "selling" politicians, and called for more community-based consultation (Winnipeg Free Press, 30 November 2003). During the 2004 election, he listed Tommy Douglas
Tommy Douglas
Thomas Clement "Tommy" Douglas, was a Scottish-born Baptist minister who became a prominent Canadian social democratic politician...

 as his political hero.

Nicol was re-elected to Selkirk City Council in 2006 where he serves as the chair of the city's Public Transit Committee and the Audit Committee.

Some biographical information in this sketch is taken from Nicol's website.

Catherine Green (Winnipeg South
Winnipeg South
Winnipeg South is a Canadian federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1917 to 1979, and since 1988. It covers the south of the city of Winnipeg...

)

Green was born in Moose Jaw
Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan
Moose Jaw is a city in south-central Saskatchewan, Canada on the Moose Jaw River. It is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina. Residents of Moose Jaw are known as Moose Javians. It is best known as a retirement and tourist city that serves as a hub to the hundreds of small towns...

, Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....

. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts
Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...

 degree from the University of Victoria
University of Victoria
The University of Victoria, often referred to as UVic, is the second oldest public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It is a research intensive university located in Saanich and Oak Bay, about northeast of downtown Victoria. The University's annual enrollment is about 20,000 students...

, and a Master of Architecture
Master of Architecture
The Master of Architecture is a professional degree in architecture, qualifying the graduate to move through the various stages of professional accreditation that result in receiving a license.-Overview:...

 from the University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...

. Green has taught for the latter institution, and for the City of Winnipeg at the time of the 2004 election as a contract officer. She is a past president of the Solar Energy Society of Manitoba.

She received 4,217 votes (11.23%), finishing third against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 cabinet minister Reg Alcock
Reg Alcock
Reginald B. Alcock, PC was a Canadian politician. He represented the riding of Winnipeg South in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2006 and was a cabinet minister in the government of Prime Minister Paul Martin. Alcock was a member of the Liberal Party of Canada.-Early life and...

.

Priscilla Settee (Saskatoon—Wanuskewin
Saskatoon—Wanuskewin
Saskatoon—Wanuskewin is a federal electoral district in Saskatchewan, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997...

)

Settee was born in Prince Albert
Prince Albert, Saskatchewan
Prince Albert is the third-largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. It is situated in the centre of the province on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River. The city is known as the "Gateway to the North" because it is the last major centre along the route to the resources of northern Saskatchewan...

, Saskatchewan, and raised in the Cumberland House Cree Nation (Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, 21 February 2006). She has been a consultant for the Aboriginal Women's Council of Saskatchewan (Toronto Star, 13 May 1990), a member of the Indigenous Women's Network (Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, 29 January 1997) and co-ordinator of the Indigenous Peoples Program at the University of Saskatchewan
University of Saskatchewan
The University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...

 (31 January 1997). In 2003, she participated in a one-week teaching session in Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...

 (SSP, 14 November 2003).

In 1997, she organized a protest against plans to bury radioactive waste in the Canadian Shield
Canadian Shield
The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...

 region of northern Saskatchewan (Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, 13 January 1997). In the same year, she helped organize a protest against the relatively light prison terms given to two men convicted in the death of an aboriginal woman (31 January 1997).

Settee was chosen as the NDP's 2004 candidate for Saskatoon—Wanuskewin in an upset over former Saskatoon Mayor Jim Maddin
Jim Maddin
Jim Maddin is a Canadian politician and currently serves as mayor of the town of Asquith in west central Saskatchewan. He served as Mayor of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan from 2000 to 2003, and sought election to the Canadian House of Commons in 2006....

 and former MP John Edmund Parry
John Edmund Parry
John Edmund Parry is a Canadian politician. He served in the Canadian House of Commons from 1984 to 1988, as a member of the New Democratic Party....

 (SSP, 29 March 2004). She was completing her PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...

 in Agriculture and Education at the same university at the time of the election. She received 5,770 votes (17.81%), finishing third against Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 incumbent Maurice Vellacott
Maurice Vellacott
Maurice Vellacott is a Canadian politician. He has served in the Canadian House of Commons since 1997, and is currently the Conservative Member of Parliament for the riding of Saskatoon—Wanuskewin in the province of Saskatchewan....

.

In 2005, Settee helped establish ties between the University of Saskatchewan and the University of San Marcos in Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....

 regarding strategies to improve university access and employment prospects for aboriginal students (SSP, 24 December 2005).

Daria Fox (Calgary Southwest
Calgary Southwest
Calgary Southwest is a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. The district is in the southwest part of the City of Calgary, south of Glenmore Trail, and west of the Canadian Pacific railway.The seat is held by Prime...

)

Fox was twenty-four years old at the time of the election, and worked as an exam centre administrator (Calgary Herald, 27 June 2004). Her campaign emphasized youth issues, and she sought to improve youth turnout at the polls (Toronto Star, 18 June 2004). She received 2,884 votes (5.59%), finishing fourth against Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...

 leader Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...

.

Fox is also a Pez dispenser collector, and organized the first Canadian Pez convention in 2002 with Jeff Fox (Vancouver Sun, 2 November 2004).

Jeff Sloychuk (Red Deer South
Red Deer South
Red Deer South is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada.The district was created from Red Deer in 1986....

)

Sloychuk was born in Red Deer, Alberta
Red Deer, Alberta
Red Deer is a city in Central Alberta, Canada. It is located near the midpoint of the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor and is surrounded by Red Deer County. It is Alberta's third-most-populous city – after Calgary and Edmonton. The city is located in aspen parkland, a region of rolling hills...

 and began a political science degree at Red Deer College
Red Deer College
Red Deer College is a public comprehensive community college of approximately 7,000 students located in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. Established in 1964, RDC was built for a smaller semi-rural community but, in the four and a half decades since its founding, the city has grown into the third largest...

, before leaving to pursue communications work for the NDP in Edmonton, Alberta.

Before pursuing his degree, he worked as a photo-journalist for the Alaska Highway News and as a salesman with a Red Deer-based business.

Bev Meslo (Vancouver South
Vancouver South
Vancouver South is a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1917 to 1997, and since 2004. It covers the southern portion of the city of Vancouver, British Columbia....

)

Meslo is a democratic socialist and political activist based in Qualicum Beach, British Columbia
Qualicum Beach, British Columbia
Qualicum Beach is a town in the Regional District of Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada. As of the 2006 census, the town had 8,502 people.On the Strait of Georgia on the north-eastern coast of Vancouver Island in the shadow of Mount Arrowsmith, the community has been a popular tourist destination,...

who ran in both the 2004 and 2006 Federal Elections. She was also a candidate in the 2003 NDP leadership election representing the party's Socialist Caucus but won only 1.1% of the vote.
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