NDP eager to bag a trophy in Tuxedo

Opinion

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This article was published 25/05/2024 (495 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

“The results were so close in Tuxedo that Stefanson was not declared a winner until two days after the election.” — The Canadian Press, May 20, 2024

For the Manitoba PCs the road to redemption begins right now. On June 18, a byelection will be held in what is considered the safest of Winnipeg ridings for the PCs.

How safe is Tuxedo for the Tories? Since the constituency’s very first provincial election in 1981, voters have only elected PCs. To be more specific, they elected Gary Filmon and Heather Stefanson, both of whom became provincial premiers. You might as well paint the streets of Tuxedo Tory Blue.

And in any other year, I might not be tempted to even scribble 50 words about this byelection. But this isn’t any year.

This is the year following an election debacle in which the only really safe Tory ridings were in rural Manitoba. Nothing in Winnipeg was safe, not even Tuxedo, where the incumbent MLA won by fewer than 290 votes. And so Premier Wab Kinew sees blood in the water. If Tuxedo is winnable for the NDP, is there any riding in the Winnipeg area that isn’t? With most Manitobans living in the capital region, if no riding in the capital city is safe, Manitoba becomes a single-party province. I won’t waste the reader’s time discussing the provincial Liberals and Greens. If you’re a political science student, fill your boots. But in political hardball, if you’re not in power and if you’re not in a position to compete for power, you’re a footnote in a book bound for the discount bin.

The NDP in Tuxedo will be running a registered nurse, Carla Compton. She will be able to count on more financial support than the candidate who lost the squeaker in October. More importantly, she will be able to count on the personal support of Kinew who will be very visible in the riding. He wants to bag this trophy. So his presence makes this contest a high-profile thumbs up or down for his leadership.

If the NDP wins on June 18, it’s a slap in the face for the Tories that will be heard around the province. You might think that the sting of the recent defeat of their government last fall, would have made them very prepared for this byelection. After all, they had plenty of warning that the incumbent was leaving. Heather Stefanson has been leaving ever since she stopped leading the government. But when the premier made the official call for a June 18 byelection, there was no Conservative candidate in Tuxedo. If the PCs were serious about seeking redemption, there was no sign of it.

It was reported that among those vying for the PC nomination in Tuxedo, there were three residents of Tuxedo, lawyer Lawrence Pinsky, real estate agent Lori Shenkarow and ex-MLA Shannon Martin, who were the nominated candidates. Voting took place and Tuxedo PC members selected Pinsky to be their candidate in the June 18 byelection.

For those who follow politics religiously, there may be curiosity about a politician who did not submit his name for the nomination in Tuxedo — Kevin Klein. There may be solid political reasons for his decision to ignore Tuxedo. It’s no secret he is a serious contender for the leadership of the party. That won’t be decided until April of next year. If Klein did not gain the PC nomination in Tuxedo, or a victory over the NDP in the June 18 byelection, his chances for winning the party leadership next year could be severely damaged. Klein was scalded by his election defeat last October, in another safe Tory riding, Kirkfield Park, home to the prestigious St. Charles golf club.

Two years ago he lost a civic election in Winnipeg, where he was running for mayor. Klein deserves credit for being a fighter, and someone who knows how to generate publicity for his positions. He’s a former newspaper publisher who is never at a loss for words. But the word no politician wants to be attached to is “loser.”

Wab Kinew, who is looking more like a winner every day was smart to call an early byelection. Give Kevin Klein credit for being smart enough not to take the bait.

Charles Adler is a longtime political commenter and podcaster.