The final scheduled All-Candidates Forum in the Kenora riding is tonight (Thursday, October 10th) in Red Lake.
It’s being held at the Cochenour Community Hall.
Questions for the candidates can be submitted in writing at the forum.
Doors open at 6:30pm, with the event scheduled to begin at 7:00pm.
CKDR News continues to take an in-depth look at the Federal candidates running in the Kenora riding.
Today we focus on Independent candidate Kelvin Boucher-Chicago.
He readily admits this isn’t his first kick at the can.
“This is my third time (running), My first two (campaigns) were more of an introduction. I had to see how the other parties were represented and how they were articulating themselves into getting elected.”
Boucher-Chicago says one of the reason’s he is running is to bring truth to the process.
“One of the things I’ve noticed is that a lot of them (other candidates and politicians) make promises. In my book, if you don’t come through with your promise you’re lying, you’re lying to the people.”
He says his goal is to buy out “Indian” status cards.
“I’m not lying to the people, I’m just telling them the truth. If you send me to Ottawa, you’re going to save a lot of money. It’s going to be an overnight economy, boom, for all the business people and everyone within the region if my plan goes through.”
He says status cards should be bought out for $80,000 over four years, and that money will go into the Canadian economy.
Boucher-Chicago, who lives in Kenora, is 54-years-old and calls himself an “entrepreneurial” jack of all trades.
Indigenous issues, growing the regional economy, job security, cutting taxes and protecting the environment.
Just some of the topics discussed last night (Tuesday) at an All-Candidates Forum in Sioux Lookout.
Five of the six candidates debated both national and local issues, while promoting their platforms when responding to questions.
Liberal Bob Nault focused on the theme “Experience Matters.”
“I have delivered and/or made serious progress on every commitment I made in the last election. So experience matters when it comes to delivering for our communities.”
Nault says “in the last four years alone, we have made historic investments of almost $2-billion in our riding. We’ve made significant progress across the board.”
However, he notes they are still far behind, pointing to cuts made by the former Harper government.
Nault adds he will be running on a local platform as well as national priorities.
He also took time to attack the Scheer government, stressing their platform and the associated costs still hasn’t been released.
“So we don’t know what kind of cuts we will get. And we will get some. Absolutely, it’s been told by the candidate tonight that we will get cuts. I would just like to know what they are.”
Conservative candidate Eric Mellilo says he’s committed to delivering investments, critical infrastructure and critical programs for our riding.
“And as part of a responsible Conservative government, we will be one which lives within our means (and) puts more money in your pocket.”
Mellilo adds under a Trudeau government, 80% of middle class Canadians are actually paying more in taxes.
He says he doesn’t want to be part of a government that is responsible for robbing future generations of their public services.
Mellilo adds the Conservatives will look at a measured approach to reduce spending and make sure that all new federal spending is found through cost savings within the government and balance the budget in five years time.
He adds one move will be a cut of $1.5-billion in corporate welfare to wealthy companies.
Mellilo highlighted on several occasions that it’s time for a new generation of leadership.
Rudy Turtle of the NDP stressed the need for change.
“We’ve had both Liberal and Conservative governments in Ottawa who haven’t lived up to their promises. They haven’t worked for you but they have been working around the clock for the big corporations and big companies.”
Turtle stresses “I am ready to work hard for our area. I am ready to fight to make life more affordable. Improve the public services we all need. Bring in universal pharmacare and take strong action on issues we are all facing.”
He notes he’s covered the entire riding and people tell him every day him that life is getting more and more expensive and wages aren’t keeping up.
Turtle says the feeling is that the very richest and the biggest corporations should pay more.
Turtle adds “the New Democrats are in it for you”, noting he will fight for all constituents when in Ottawa.
Kirsi Ralko of the Green’s agrees with an earlier comment that this a time for a new generation of leadership.
However, she notes “experience matters and by voting for me you can vote for someone with a breath of experience in law, as a business owner and in government as a local politician.”
Ralko says “The Green Party of Canada believes that Canadians are resilient and innovative. We don’t shy away from a challenge, we rise to the occasion. That’s why the Green Party of Canada’s aggressive climate plan is called ‘Mission Possible’ and you as a voter can contribute to that mission.”
Ralko believes there won’t be a majority government, so she’s encouraging strategic voting by choosing the Green Party.
Independent Kelvin Boucher-Chicago pledged to take the ideas of constituents directly to Ottawa.
Boucher-Chicago says “I know for a fact that the three major parties; the Liberals, and the Conservatives and the NDP in the past, they have benched their people for speaking up for them. No, they can’t bench people.”
“He adds for 16 years, the taxpayers have been constantly paying and paying to help the little people. It doesn’t work that way. Somehow the dollars get caught up in somebody’s pocket.”
Michael Di Pasquale of the People’s Party of Canada wasn’t in attendance.
The Forum was also streamed by the Sioux Lookout Public Library and the video can be found below.
We are near the home stretch in the Federal election campaign and over the next few days CKDR News will be profiling the Kenora riding candidates.
Today we feature Michael Di Pasquale of the People’s Party of Canada.
Di Pasquale talks about why he decided to run for the PPC.
“It’s about efficiency which is doing the right thing in the right place at the right time. It’s also a Canada-first policy…really I’m getting a little bit tired of the Trump comparisons.”
He admits the PPC is the most conservative party in the election campaign.
“I believe that we will be able to do the socialist aspects that do so much to make Canada the country it is without the sacrifices that we’re making. I think that we’ll be able to have a vibrant economy, take care of our people and have proper welfare and healthcare systems.”
Di Pasquale says he decided to run because the politics of the Liberals was too much for him.
“Especially with the Liberals they say one thing and they turn around and they do something different. It’s been really upsetting me for a while, they’re throwing away our money, arguably giving away our country. It’s quite sad.”
The Red Lake area resident is a first-time candidate for any party in the federal election.
The candidates running in the Federal election in the Kenora riding will get another opportunity to debate regional and national issues tonight. (Tuesday, October 8th).
An All-Candidates Forum is being held at the Royal Canadian Legion in Sioux Lookout at 6:30pm.
The first forum was held in Kenora last week and a third session is being held in Red Lake on Thursday.
The local slate includes incumbent Liberal Bob Nault, Conservative Eric Melilo, Rudy Turtle of the NDP, Kirsi Ralko of the Green Party, Independent candidate Kelvin Boucher-Chicago and Michael Di Pasquale of the People’s Party of Canada.
The Federal election is fast approaching and over the next few days CKDR News will be taking a close look at all of the candidates in the Kenora riding.
Today we feature Green Party candidate Kirsi Ralko.
Ralko grew up in Thunder Bay, went to law school in Winnipeg and now practices in Kenora.
She says being on Kenora City Council has been the spring board into federal politics.
“My experience on City Council has led me to want to impact real change in ways that we simply cant as council. That’s the big motivator behind my federal campaign”.
The lawyer and local business owner says the Green Party is more than just about the environment.
“Taking drastic action on climate change is certainly our main message, but it’s not the only one; we’re not a single-issue party. We’re cognizant of the economy, we want students to go to school for free, we want everyone to earn a living wage and we want affordable housing.”
Ralko says her goal as the Green Party candidate is to get the vote of the younger generation out.
“I think that our message really resonates with younger voters so certainly that’s a key demographic for me. Part of my messaging is (that) there are more than two parties to vote for in this campaign. If you’re tired of the status quo, the Green Party is a legitimate and viable alternative.”
Two national debates will take place this week with the six major federal party leaders.
The English-language debate is tonight (Monday, October 7th) at 6:00pm central time.
Leaders of the Bloc Quebecois, Conservatives, Green Party, Liberals, N-D-P and People’s Party will take part.
Five topics will be covered including affordability and economic insecurity, environment and energy, Indigenous issues, leadership in Canada and on the global stage, polarization, human rights and immigration.
The French-language debate is Thursday night.
The slate for the federal election in the Kenora riding has become a little more crowded.
A sixth candidate has joined the race.
Michael Di Pasquale is representing the People’s Party of Canada.
He joins Eric Melillo (Conservative), Kirsi Ralko (Green), Bob Nault (Incumbent Liberal), Rudy Turtle (NDP) and Kelvin Boucher-Chicago (Independent).
All six are starting to prepare for All-Candidates forums.
The first will be held in Kenora on Wednesday, October 2nd.
A second forum has been scheduled for Tuesday, October 8th at the Royal Canadian Legion in Sioux Lookout.
Federal Liberal leader Justin Trudeau insists his government has done a lot to help northwestern Ontario and First Nations communities.
As part of an exclusive interview with Acadia Broadcasting, Trudeau pointed to advancements in reconciliation, infrastructure, housing and investments in FedNor.
He admits there are a number of challenges that still need attention.
“Specifically housing. Specially waste water. I recognize that remote, rural and northern communities face particular challenges around cell phone coverage and access to broadband.”
Trudeau insists his government has been partnering with those communities on these issues.
Trudeau also pledged to reduce cell phone bills by 25%.
He says the big three cell phone providers must lower their rates or his government will bring in more competition.
Trudeau was in Thunder Bay yesterday (Wednesday) to meet with some 300 supporters.
Elections Canada has made some changes to make it easier to vote.
Chief Electoral Officer Stephane Perrault says voting hours will now be 9:00am to 9:00pm from Friday, October 11th until Monday, October 14th.
Advance polls across the country will also increase 25% and there will be a streamlined process to reduce wait times.
Perrault is encouraging all Canadians to ensure they’re on this year’s voting list.
“By registering and updating your information, you are making sure that you will get a voter information card, generally known as a ‘VIC’, that will tell you everything that you need to know about when and where to vote.”
Perrault says many names on the the list for the 2015 election are no longer there.
“Removing electors who have been essentially in-active for many years. We would write to those electors and if they have not written back, we have removed those electors.”
Perrault says another 75,000 people who weren’t Canadians citizens or didn’t respond to inquiries about their citizenship have also been taken off the list.
For more information, visit https://www.elections.ca/home.aspx
