Community News

HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE VOTING ON JUNE 2

CATHERINE WHITNALL cwhitnall@mykawar tha.com

Here's what you need to know about the Kawartha Lakes candidates, riding and issues before voting on June 2.

THE RIDING:

Victoria-Haliburton was created as a provincial electoral district in 1967 with slight boundary modifications made in 1975 which eliminated the Improvement District of Bicroft and 1986 to exclude Manvers Township; which was reversed several years later.

A major electoral riding redistribution, created by the reduction of legislative seats from 130 to 103 in 1996, saw the riding boundary harmonized with the already existing federal ridings.

In 1996, a major electoral riding redistribution occurred which abolished the riding. Overall 130 seats were reduced to 103 which harmonized the provincial riding boundaries with those of the already existing federal ridings.

The riding, known then as Haliburton-Victoria-Brock, consisted of parts of Victoria, Haliburton and

Peterborough counties, as well as parts of Durham East, DurhamYork and Hastings.

In 2007 it was renamed Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock after Victoria County was renamed Kawartha Lakes. The riding also gained Algonquin Highlands and Cavan-Monaghan.

The local riding has primarily been represented at Queen's Park by the Conservatives like Leslie Frost who accrued 26 years and incumbent Laurie Scott who has been the local MPP for 17 years; albeit not consecutively.

A by-election was held March 5, 2009 after Scott stepped down so then Party Leader John Tory could seek a seat in the Legislature. The move did not sit well with voters and Rick Johnson became the third Liberal to represent the riding. Scott rallied in 2011 and returned to Toronto.

The riding has been represented once by the New Democratic Party in the early 1990s, however Dennis Drainville severed ties the party and served the last five months of his term as an Independent.

THE CANDIDATES:

DON MCBEY - LIBERAL

McBey is running for the first time. His campaign centres greatly around the fallout from the province's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and focuses on addressing spiraling housing and energy prices, supporting small businesses, preserving natural heritage and farming communities, increasing funding for schools and healthcare, and expanding publicly-funded in-home care for seniors.

LAURIE SCOTT - CONSERVATIVE

Scott looks forward to ongoing investments in the areas of housing, municipal infrastructure, healthcare and education, while continuing to work towards Ontario's economic recovery by adding to the thousands of new jobs that were created under the Ford government.

BARBARA DOYLE - NDP

Doyle is focused on rebuilding what has been lost over the last four years and investing in areas such as healthcare, seniors' at-home supports and long-term care, increasing wages and supports and making everyday life - from hydro, auto insurance and gasoline to childcare and the cost of housing - more accessible and affordable. KERSTIN KELLY - ONTARIO PARTY Kelly is running on a platform of accountability and transparency, serving as not just a representative of the riding, but an advocate for its residents. Her priorities include, but are not limited to, restoring inalienable rights and freedoms, fighting against digital identity, programmable digital currency, over-regulation and excess red tape, and improvements in healthcare and education.

TOM REGINA - GREEN PARTY

Regina plans to put people before politics and work with all stakeholders to consult, listen and come to a consensus where decisions are made. This includes such areas as wages and job security, housing, education, the environment, clean energy and healthcare.

GENE BALFOUR - ONTARIO LIBERTARIAN PARTY

Balfour has been a persistent advocate for less government since 2007, using past elections - he has run eight times - to actively encourage citizens to embrace Libertarian ideas which lead to a lessdivided and more cooperative civil society via four principles - individual liberty, personal responsibility, mutual respect and fairness - applied equally to every citizen under unbiased laws.

THE ISSUES:

A number of issues have become prominent in the community which the next elected MPP will have to address.

These include the economic recovery from COVID-19, supports for mental health and addiction - both of which have been significantly affected by the pandemic and will continue for years to come and environmental concerns, specifically climate change.

Housing is an issue which continues to rock the region, as housing prices continue to rise as more people move out from the GTA. Creating affordable housing options continues to be a key concern for many citizens.

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2022-05-19T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-19T07:00:00.0000000Z

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