Peggy Revell
Zoey Duncan
THUNDER BAY—Incumbent John Rafferty rode to victory on the historic orange wave in yesterday’s federal election, which saw the NDP become the Official Opposition for the first time in the party’s 50-year history.
Rafferty captured 48.61 percent of the vote to cruise to re-election in Thunder Bay-Rainy River, garnering 18,039 votes to beat Conservative candidate Maureen (“Moe”) Comuzzi-Stehmann, who finished second with 10,096.
Liberal hopeful Ken Boshcoff, a former two-term MP, was a distant third (8,066) while Green Party candidate Ed Shield came last (909).
(All results are unofficial until final ballot counts are verified by Elections Canada).
“I hope to continue to hold your trust [Tuesday] when, first thing in the morning, I roll up my sleeves and start fighting for affordability and retirement security and health care, and all of the issues that have been identified,” Rafferty told supporters at a jubilant and packed victory party at the Victoria Inn in Thunder Bay last night.
He reiterated that his party intends to fix a broken Ottawa to “build the kind of Canada we want. . . .”
“A Canada where everybody helps everybody else through the tough times. A Canada where families come first, nobody’s left behind,” he stressed.
“We’ve had that slogan for the last couple of elections and it’s never been truer than it is today.”
Between handshakes and amid bright orange balloons, Rafferty set out a challenge to the new majority Conservative government.
“Remember just before the election, Mr. Harper said, ‘Mission Accomplished’ on the economy,” Rafferty noted.
“Well, it’s not ‘mission accomplished’ in Northern Ontario and I suspect it’s not ‘mission accomplished’ in most parts of Canada.
“We need to continue that fight,” he vowed.
But NDP supporters weren’t the only ones celebrating last night as local Conservatives cheered news of a majority government for their party at their campaign headquarters.
“We did terrific,” Comuzzi-Stehmann enthused about her hard-working campaign team and district voters who bumped her into a second-place finish behind Rafferty—up from past elections where the Conservatives have finished in third locally.
“Most importantly, our leader, Prime Minister Stephen Harper, got what he deserved—he got his majority,” she said proudly.
“He’s a proven leader with a proven record and Canadians should feel safe with Mr. Harper behind them.”
And while she won’t be heading to Ottawa this time around, Comuzzi-Stehmann vowed that the riding has not seen the last of her—with her eyes already set on a seat in Ottawa when the next election rolls around in four years.
Meanwhile across town, a resolute Boshcoff watched his Liberal Party lose seat after seat across the country last night, particularly in Ontario.
“We’re getting pounded,” he conceded to one supporter at his campaign headquarters.
“Lots of incumbents going down.”
About 30 supporters showed up to watch the results along with Boshcoff at the Slovac Legion in Thunder Bay on what turned out to be a rather sombre evening.
“You always have two speeches when you come to these things,” he mused.
“We thought it was a lot closer, but I guess people had really made their minds up.”
Boshcoff, who took a leave of absence from his position as a Thunder Bay councillor to run in the federal election, attributed his loss to the battle between NDP leader Jack Layton and the Liberals’ Michael Ignatieff rather than a personal campaign loss.
The Green Party also wasn’t doing well on election night, conceded Shields, who took time to drop by Rafferty’s celebration party and offer his congratulations.
“John Rafferty is a great guy and he’ll do a wonderful job as he did last time, so I think everything looks good,” Shields said, though also admitting he’s “not too happy” about the
Conservative majority.
But with the historic election of Green leader Elizabeth May to the House of Commons, Shields remained optimistic despite the vote losses the party suffered yesterday—noting her being elected will help the party “regain” its footing.
“Just like the NDP, they were a non-entity for many, many years and all of a sudden they’ve come along, and I think the Green Party can do the same thing,” he reasoned.
“I think we will come with the future.”
