I had a wonderful day, getting on the 6 AM train from Ottawa en route to London, via Toronto. The sun was shining (although not for the first hour and a bit of the trip before sunrise!), the fall colours still clung to trees along the route and a peregrine falcon flew by.(have I mentioned I love the train?) I was being "shadowed" today by a journalist doing a profile on me for Chatelaine magazine...(thankfully, no chain saws involved!)
I spent the afternoon in London meeting new supporters and asking advice of London area community leaders. A few media interviews thrown into the mix, and we had a full day even before the 7 PM nomination meeting. I came upon a large group of 80 or so people in the space reserved for the Green Party meeting at a local restaurant and thought that was our crowd... then I turned the corner to a packed room of another 80 or so people...The room and all access to it was over-flowing. The local television crews were there as well. Tonight the Green Party nomination was the lead tv news for London area CTV at 11:30.
No one contested my nomination. My decision to seek the seat was largely influenced by support from local area Green Party members. I am committed to running a strong campaign and demonstrating how democracy is more important than mere politics.
Meanwhile around the corner, the NDP candidate was nominated. She's Megan Walker, a former City Councillor, while the Conservative candidate, Dianne Haskett, was profiled in the Ottawa Citizen for her record as a strong opponent of gay rights and most recently for a six year stint in Washington DC working with a fundamentalist organization dedicated to greater religious content to US foreign policy. As of tonight, the Liberals have not yet scheduled their nomination meeting.
My team found us a great spot for our office. Right downtown, with a good storefront and not far from the train station. I am planning to have childcare available for our volunteers. A lot of young Greens have young families. In this I am inspired by Jean Charest, who, while a Conservative, had child care in his campaign office called "Tiny Tories or les bebes blue"..... We'll have "Green Sprouts."
And with that, exactly two months since I was elected leader of the Green Party, I am off to the races!