Editor's note: This article has been corrected. A previous version said the Green Party would select its local candidate May 16, which is not the case. It will take place later in the year.
Guelph will have a local Green candidate ahead of the next federal election. Parachute candidates aren’t part of the conversation.
“We’re looking for a strong candidate,” said Geoff Martin, interim CEO and president of the Green Party’s Guelph Electoral District Association.
“There is no need to look outside for someone strong.”
There are about six people who are interested in throwing their hats in the ring to be the federal Green Party candidate, he said.
“The reason we haven't nominated someone yet is because we have a contested nomination,” said Martin. With a half dozen interested people the process is moving forward and an open call-out for nominations will be sent out in the next two weeks.
Nominations close at the annual general meeting on May 16. The nominees will go through a vetting process and then they campaign to drum up support from Guelph Green Party members. A nomination meeting will be held where members will vote and a candidate will be announced. There is no confirmed date for the nomination meeting.
The interested people vying to become the federal Guelph Green candidate all live in Guelph. Martin said they are also fairly well-known people in the community.
“And it's a priority for the Green Party for us to win this riding,” he said.
Federal Liberal MP Lloyd Longfield decided to not seek re-election in the next election. So far city councillor Dominique O'Rourke is the only person to announce she is seeking the nomination. The local Liberal riding association did not immediately respond when asked about a nomination date.
The Guelph New Democratic Party Electoral Association chose its candidate, Janice Folk-Dawson, in the fall.
The Guelph Conservative Association did not immediate respond when asked about it's nomination process.
The Guelph Greens decided to start the nomination process now since an election could be called at any point before Oct. 20, 2025.
“Green Party is a competitor in elections, especially in communities where, you know, the community accepts those values, or wants independent minded candidates and wants to save the environment,” said Martin.
The nomination opens just over a month after Green Party co-leaders Elizabeth May and Jonathan Pedneault came to Guelph to kick off their Leaders’ Tour on Feb. 16.
Pedneault sees a synergy in the area around progressive voices in politics since Kitchener now has Green MP Mike Morrice and Green MPP Aislinn Clancy, he said in an interview at the Leaders’ Tour.
Guelph is top of mind for us, he said.
