Iain Currie, who has been acclaimed as the candidate for the Liberal Party of Canada in the newly-launched riding of Kamloops-Thompson-Nicola/via files
The first repeat candidate in the Kamloops-Thompson-Cariboo from the 2019 federal election has been declared, with Iain Currie running for the Green Party.
Currie, a lawyer, finished fourth on the ballot two years ago but helped the Greens earn their highest share of votes ever in this riding. He received more than 8,700 votes, which represented 12.13 per cent of all votes.
“When I compared what the future looked like for me in the 1980’s to what the future looks like for my kids on our current trajectory, I knew that I had to do something,” Currie said. “When I looked beyond the climate crisis, I realized that the future of our economy and our political systems also need reform and that the way politics has come to be done in the country is not up to the challenge.”
Currie said this is a “foolish and unnecessary election, called for purely selfish political gain,” referencing Liberal leader Justin Trudeau’s decision to dissolve parliament and trigger an election, as he pursues a majority mandate instead of his current minority.
“At a time when our community is on fire, battling a fourth wave of COVID-19, and struggling to come to terms with the horror of hundreds of unmarked graves of children at the residential school. That this is seen as a time not for cooperation, reflection or analysis but for partisan political opportunity should tell you a lot about our broken system, and about why, this time, you should vote against cynicism, partisanship and business as usual and vote for something better.”
With Currie now running, the field in this riding is crowded with lawyers. The Conservative Party (Frank Caputo), Liberal Party (Jesse McCormick) and NDP (Bill Sundhu) have also chosen lawyers to fly their flags for the Sept. 20 vote. A fifth candidate is Coraly Delwo, who is representing the People’s Party of Canada.
Regardless of who wins locally, there will be a new Member of Parliament for the KTC, as Conservative incumbent MP Cathy McLeod will be retiring from politics. The retired nurse and former mayor of Pemberton has served the riding since 2008.
