Where are all the candidates?

(September 08) - Suppose they called an election and nobody came. It sounds improbable, and couldn’t happen. Or could it? There doesn’t appear to be a lot of getting ready going on around town.

Michael Ignatieff, the Liberal leader, is starting to talk tough. He is threatening to stop propping up the Harper government. Does anyone believe him, after all the backing down he and his predecessor did? It appears as though none of the local political parties do.

Things are eerily quiet in the riding associations that will try to send Guelph MP Frank Valeriote back to his law practice. None even has a nomination meeting scheduled. None of the three major opposition candidates from last year’s election are running again. It is, when you think about it, quite astonishing that neither the Conservatives, the NDP nor the Greens have put someone forward to build name recognition and to position themselves as a credible challenger to Valeriote.

What we are going through now makes no sense to those who spend any time at all observing politics. We have been in a minority government situation since Oct. 14 of last year. In theory, the government could have fallen at any time since then. It would be a shock to the system if the Liberals nominated anyone but the incumbent Valeriote. Why don’t the other three have someone in place by now, building name recognition and support?

It is completely disingenuous for them all to say they are still fatigued from last year’s contest. We all remember the marathon byelection that turned into a general election at the last minute. Yes, it was a stretch. It placed a huge burden on everyone’s campaign resources. Out in the real world of politics, it shouldn’t take a year to recover.

A year ago, the local Conservatives wasted most of their energy fighting among themselves. That appears to be behind them now, but with Gloria Kovach pulling herself out of the mix, who do they have with any sort of plausibility? It would be a surprise to see Brent Barr step forward after the way the riding association humiliated him. We are more likely to see the two of them stepping forward for next year’s “nonpartisan” municipal election, one running for mayor and the other for council.

The NDP and the Greens have been playing their cards close to the vest over the past year. They each had an exceptional candidate in 2008. Neither wants to stand again, and both parties seem content to wait until the last moment to get someone in place.

The NDP has a search committee looking at available talent. They have a lot to look at. I’d like to see a candidate step forward from the labour movement. What with this recession and all, it would be good to hear someone speak out in defence of workers and their families.

There was a flurry of excitement a month or so ago when Elizabeth May announced she was considering Guelph as the next place to decline the opportunity to send her to Ottawa. Now she is looking at British Columbia instead. She hasn’t entirely given up on Guelph. She’s back in town on Thursday, speaking on campus. Guelph has lots of dedicated environmentalists who can carry the Green flag. One will step forward. You never know. One of the Hanlon Creek occupants might want to make change from inside the belly of the beast.

No matter how you look at it, we are in for a fascinating few weeks. Either Valeriote gets a free pass, or three good citizens will stand up and challenge him.