Tories salivating over Neville's riding

OTTAWA -- Conservative candidates are lining up to try their hand at an upset in the longest-held Liberal riding in Western Canada.Downtown Winnipeg developer and advocate Hart Mallin, and Air Canada pilot and Winnipeg lawyer Raymond Hall have both announced they intend to seek the Conservative nomination for Winnipeg South Centre.

Residents of the riding, held by Liberal MP Anita Neville since 2000, have voted Liberal for three decades, including in 1984, when it was the only riding west of Ontario to stay with the Liberals during Brian Mulroney's major sweep for the Conservatives. In 2008, it was the only riding in Manitoba the Liberals held onto, and one of only seven in Western Canada.

The Conservatives have steadily gained in Winnipeg South Centre, jumping to more than 14,000 votes in 2008, from just over 10,000 votes in 2000.

The gap between Neville and her Conservative challengers has grown smaller -- 2,335 votes in 2008 compared with 5,892 votes in 2000.

Mallin, who is an influential behind-the-scenes player at city hall, said it's the right time in his life to move into politics.

"I've never found as much passion for an administration as I do with this administration," Mallin said of Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives.

Ironically, Mallin got his start in politics working on Neville's 1984 school trustee campaign.

He and Neville are first cousins.

Hall said he has been thinking about running for public office for 25 years but crime rates motivated him to finally run.

He said he is also disgusted by the ethical standards in government, mentioning both the Liberal sponsorship scandal and the recent memory-challenged conduct of former prime minister Brian Mulroney at a public inquiry.

The nomination vote will occur no later than July 8. Nominations close June 16 and the nomination contest must be held within 21 days.

Neville has already secured the nomination for the Liberals.

Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff said Liberal incumbents would not face nomination challenges if there are at least 400 members in their ridings and at least 10 monthly contributors to the Liberal Victory Fund. Neville met the criteria.

In Saint Boniface, former Liberal MP Raymond Simard intends to try to get his seat back from Winnipeg police officer Shelly Glover, who defeated him last October by almost 5,000 votes.

Simard, who was the Liberal MP for Saint Boniface from 2002 until 2008, has gone back to working as a business consultant.

Ignatieff has said he believes Saint Boniface is a riding the party shouldn't have lost and can win back.

Simard said he knows it "will be difficult," but said with a stronger leader and without the noose of former Liberal leader Stéphane Dion's Green Shift proposal, he's got a better chance.

All nine incumbent Conservative MPs in Manitoba, Glover included, have been nominated to run again.

The parties are nominating candidates to prepare for the next election, which could come as early as this summer, but is more likely to occur in the fall or next year.

mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 6, 2009 A10