NDP to acclaim candidate for upcoming provincial election

The last of the four major parties is preparing to formalize its candidate for the provincial election in June. Local NDP party members are set to acclaim James Parr into the role later this month.

“I’m very excited and can’t wait to run for the NDP,” said Parr, a senior transportation analyst by profession. “My family has had a long (history) of service to the community, which in a big part inspired me to run for provincial office.”

The acclamation meeting is set to be held virtually on March 14, confirmed Guelph riding association president Rosalind Gunn.

Parr was born and raised in Guelph, having graduated from John F. Ross before earning an engineering degree from the University of Guelph and a masters degree for innovation management from the University of Toronto.

In describing his family’s past community service, he stated his grandfather was a local church minister and his grandmother was a public health nurse. His father was involved in the founding of Tour de Guelph, which is an annual fundraiser for Guelph General Hospital Foundation.

In terms of key issues heading into the election, Parr said he’s passionate about housing availability and affordability, particularly for renters, first-time homebuyers and young families, as well as climate change action/holding corporations responsible for their impact, and proactive access to mental health services for all.

“Right now, locally and globally, we are at a crossroads,” said Parr. “There are multiple crises affecting us. 

“I’m looking forward to talking to everyone and understanding what real issues affect them.”

The general election will be held on or before June. 2.

Guelph lawyer Peter McSherry was acclaimed last August as the Progressive Conservative party candidate for Guelph. 

That same month Raechelle Devereaux, chief executive officer of Guelph Community Health Centre, was acclaimed as the Liberal Party candidate for Guelph.

Incumbent MPP Mike Schreiner, leader of the Green Party of Ontario, was confirmed as his party’s candidate last April. 

There were eight candidates on local ballots in 2018, with Schreiner coming out on top with 29,082 votes (41 per cent of eligible voters), followed by PC candidate Ray Ferraro with 14,084 (22 per cent), Agnieszka Mlynarz of the NDP with 13,929 (21.6 per cent) and the Liberal party’s Sly Castaldi with 6,537 (10 per cent).

Four other candidates received less than 1,000 votes collectively, accounting for 1.46 per cent of the total verified votes cast.

During the 2018 general election, Guelph had a voter turnout of 65,082 (61 per cent of eligible voters), according to Elections Ontario.