Blaikie re-elected in Elmwood-Transcona

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This article was published 23/10/2019 (2467 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Daniel Blaikie has been re-elected as Member of Parliament for Elmwood-Transcona.

“There were a lot of people who worked hard to make this possible,” Blaikie said. “It’s not just about me, but about the people who wanted to send Trudeau a message without getting a Conservative government and the cuts that often come with that.”

First elected in 2015, the 35-year-old NDP candidate campaigned on a promise to hold government accountable. Specifically, he said he intends to push for universal pharmacare, electoral reform, and meaningful climate action.

“We’ll be working hard to negotiate parties where we share common policy objectives to gain action on files that matter,” Blaikie said. “We hope to translate whatever leverage we have to real results. But that depends on other parties and their willingness to negotiate in good faith.

”Blaikie once again defeated Conservative candidate Lawrence Toet, who represented the riding as Member of Parliament from 2011 to 2015. In October 2015, Blaikie won the riding by 61 votes, making it the closest race in the country.

On Oct. 21, Blaikie received 19,841 votes according to Elections Canada, or 45.6 per cent of the vote in the riding. Meanwhile, 16,426 voted for Toet, 37.7 per cent of the vote.  

“It was a tight race all the way,” Blaikie said. “The margin ended up being bigger than we’d dared to hope. I’m grateful to be given the mandate.”

Liberal Party candidate Jennifer Malabar placed a distant third in the race with 5,282 votes, while Green Party candidate Kelly Manweiler claimed 1,477 votes, and the People’s Party candidate Noel Gautron received 506 votes. Voter turnout in the riding was reported as 62.64 per cent. 

Along with his duties in the House of Commons, Blaikie said he hopes to work with the local government in Winnipeg to come up with a replacement for the Louise Bridge.

“The seniors at the Columbus Housing Co-op have the riverbank approaching their home every year,” Blaikie said. “(The Louise Bridge) is a good project and I feel it could mean a lot to seniors as well who live there.”

Nationally, Blaikie said he will continue to push hard for electoral reform.

“We are interested in making any progress we can on that file,” he said. 

Sheldon Birnie
Managing editor

Sheldon Birnie is the managing editor of the Free Press Community Review. Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca or call him at 204-697-7112

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