I’m bummed and I know other NDP voters are, too. Parkdale riding lost one of parliament’s strongest MPs when voters decided to dump Peggy Nash in favour of Gerard Kennedy.
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I blame the strategic voting strategy that confused even the smartest of citizens and convinced them that it was in their interests to vote Liberal in a riding that had an NDP incumbent.
And not just any incumbent. Nash is energetic, smart and willing to take risks. It was Nash who hauled herself to Lebanon to get a first-hand look at the war there as it broke out and drove so many dual citizens back to Canada. It was Nash who supported a minimum wage, who pushed for day care, farma care, all the central planks of the New Democrats.
During that same period, her Liberal opponent was doing…well, we’re not exactly sure what. Kennedy seems to have to disappeared from the political scene, content to let Stephane Dion, the leader he crowned, suffer alone as he sank in the polls, having to bear the contempt of Stephen Harper and even his fellow Liberals.
Does Kennedy’s disappearing act look anything like responsible? Isn’t this the guy who should have stood strong and have constructed good reasons for supporting Dion. What happened?
Instead, Kennedy went door to door, explaining that the Liberals could potentially win the election but only if they could pull in the votes. As if. Had I been in that riding I would have said this to Kennedy:
“Exactly what have you done to deserve my vote? We have a terrific MP as it is. Voting her in will increase the depth of what will wind up being a minority opposition. The idea that the Liberals could actually win the election is laughable. Can’t you read? They Grits’ll never win. And guess who we can blame for that – the guy who sent his chunk of delegates over to the Dion camp during the Liberal convention. Oh, right, that was you.”
In his story in NOW this week, Andrew Cash alludes to the fact that Parkdale will not be represented properly in the days ahead. Kennedy will be too busy dealing with the Liberal party’s inner turmoil to do much for his riding.
Let me add that that will be true for any sitting Grit. All the moreso for Kennnedy who, having done zero self-reflection over the past two years, having been sent no message by angry voters, having expressed no regret about anything, having no reason to, really – on the contrary, he’s emerged victorious – will probably run for the leadership again.
That’ll take his focus away entirely from his Parkdale constituency. A part of me thinks those Liberal voters deserve that.
