Inner-city showdown

Edward Carriere has cut a lot of hair during the 47 years he has worked in his salon, which is smack dab in the middle of Winnipeg Centre.

He also lives in the riding, and like many voters, Carriere is torn. He wonders which candidate and party to support during these troubled times under U.S. tariffs: incumbent NDP MP Leah Gazan or the Liberal candidate, whose chances have exploded under new party leader Mark Carney.

“Leah is very popular in this area,” Carriere said. “But then there is all the news happening down in the United States. We are personally trying to feel good about it, but it has been only bad. Then the amount of support Mark Carney is getting is amazing.

“So what do we do? Support someone popular in the area? Or go the other way? These are the questions.”

Gazan said whether the election produces another minority Liberal government, or even a majority, and despite the country’s problems related to U.S. President Donald Trump and tariffs, she’s the best representative for the constituents in a riding that has one of the highest levels of poverty in the country.

“I have an extraordinary reputation at the House of Commons for working across party lines to get things done for people,” the 53-year-old said. “I will continue doing that.

“People need to come before partisanship and politics. That has always been my priority (and) I think the accomplishments we have seen in Winnipeg Centre are a testament to that.”

As of the 2021 census, 87,499 people lived in the riding that it is bordered by the Red River to the east, the Assiniboine River to the south, a few blocks into St. James in the west, and stretches to the north to a section of Magnus Street in the North End as well as Red River College in the northwest corner.

The riding’s NDP and labour roots run deep. J.S. Woodsworth, who later went on to help form and lead the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, the forerunner of the NDP, was elected here in 1917. After the riding was renamed Winnipeg North Centre, Woodsworth continued to be re-elected until he died in 1942.

That’s when the CCF’s Stanley Knowles was elected and he held the seat, except for one term from 1958 to 1962, under both the CCF and the NDP until deciding to retire in 1984. NDP MP Cyril Keeper held it for one term before Liberal David Walker was elected for two terms. The NDP’s Pat Martin won it back in 1997 and held it until Liberal Robert-Falcon Ouellette ousted him in 2015.

Gazan won it back in 2019 and was re-elected two years later. This is her third election.

Gazan said she is proud because while she has been in office, Ottawa gave $10 million to the downtown Women’s Health Clinic — “Something I championed for so long” — as well as more than $440 million in sustainable infrastructure and new construction, more than $205 million in public transit and transportation infrastructure, and more than $120 million to tackle the homeless issue.

“These are our wins. I want to keep building the momentum,” she said. “The response at the door has been overwhelming… it is actually more positive this election.

“All you have to do is drive through Winnipeg Centre to see a sea of orange.”

That’s not how Liberal candidate Rahul Walia sees it. While sitting in his campaign office, a former stir fry restaurant on Sherbrook Street, he said he feels confident about his chances of painting the inner-city riding red.

“Trump, tariffs and trade are obviously the big concerns at the door, but people are very concerned about who will be the best party and the best member, to deliver on issues of affordability,” said the 23-year-old Walia, who has a master’s degree in political management from Carleton University in Ottawa and was a regional adviser to Transport Canada.

“We have longtime NDP supporters, people that have never even considered voting Liberal, have now either become undecided or are outright supporting me. In fact, putting up signs on their lawns. We’re running a well-rounded campaign with positive messaging and it has only benefited us.”

Walia was born at the former Women’s Hospital at Health Sciences Centre and his first residence was at the student housing across the street. His dad was studying biochemistry at the time.

“I was born, raised and currently reside in Winnipeg Centre,” he said, noting his family has a construction business in the riding. “This riding is and will forever be home, which is why I have an understanding of our community’s needs.

“The only time I have lived outside the riding was to pursue my education and, even then, I was serving Manitobans and Winnipeggers, through my contributions in Transport Canada, which led to the expansion of the Winnipeg regional airport.”

The Free Press spoke with Conservative Party of Canada candidate Tom Bambrick, by both phone and email in the last couple of weeks, but after sending questions to him by email, he replied: “After taking some time and consideration, we have decided to decline.”

Green Party candidate Gary Gervais last ran for the party in the riding in 2006 before moving and being elected as a school trustee in the Louis Riel School Division. The 55-year-old Gervais, the owner of Heartland International Language School, moved back to the riding in 2014.

Gervais said his message about climate and the environment resonates more now than the last time he ran.

“People were on board with the climate then, but it is more so now,” he said. “There were more deniers back then.

“But is it the most important issue now? No. I think that there is the great matter of what the American government is doing is top of mind for everyone… so why should I vote Green when I fear the Americans? A Green vote shows it is an important item and should be on the agenda.”

Walker, who represented the riding from 1988 to 1997, said in his experience, not many votes have to change for a candidate to win.

“Lots of people don’t realize how small the voting cohort is in Winnipeg Centre. There is a lesser turnout because of poverty and new immigrants… Because of that, 1,000 votes can change things.”– former Winnipeg Centre MP David Walker

“Lots of people don’t realize how small the voting cohort is in Winnipeg Centre,” he said.

“There is a lesser turnout because of poverty and new immigrants. A change in national opinion can easily carry somebody across the finish line. Because of that, 1,000 votes can change things.”

Martin, who defeated Walker to retake the riding for the NDP, said the riding “has such a strong tradition of voting CCF/NDP that I’m confident voters there remember that Canada works best when there’s a strong NDP presence in the House of Commons — if only to make sure the Liberals behave like Liberals.

“From what I hear, people love Leah and appreciate her work.”

University of Manitoba political studies professor Christopher Adams said while a Liberal wave swept out the NDP MP in 2015, he doesn’t believe Gazan would be trounced if a red wave is repeated.

“I think it was a confluence of circumstances,” Adams said. “(Liberal) Robert-Falcon Ouellette was a media darling who ran for mayor and shot up to third place out of nowhere. Pat Martin was seen as not as interactive to that riding as people would like so he was defeated.”

“Since then, Leah Gazan has been quite visible… when there are big changes, even a riding like this can change, but I think the local candidate makes a difference in this riding. Of the three (Winnipeg) ridings the NDP has now, Gazan’s is probably the safest.”

Kelly Saunders, associate political science professor at Brandon University, agrees.

“If the NDP hold on to any riding, it would be there,” Saunders said.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca

Kevin Rollason
Reporter

Kevin Rollason is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He graduated from Western University with a Masters of Journalism in 1985 and worked at the Winnipeg Sun until 1988, when he joined the Free Press. He has served as the Free Press’s city hall and law courts reporter and has won several awards, including a National Newspaper Award. Read more about Kevin.

Every piece of reporting Kevin produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.