(L-R) Barbara Biley, Jonah Gowans, Byron Horner, Gord Johns and Sean Wood attended a two-hour Courtenay-Alberni all-candidates forum Monday night in Parksville. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

fishing for votes

Courtenay-Alberni candidates try to firm up support in front of large crowd

Sep 30, 2019 | 3:50 PM

PARKSVILLE — All-candidate forums in the Oceanside region typically means standing room only crowds, and the latest installment was no different.

Five candidates hoping to be the next Member of Parliament for Courtenay-Alberni spent two hours trying to impress an estimated 600 people jammed into the Parksville Community Centre Monday night.

The race is widely expected to be a dual between incumbent New Democrat MP Gord Johns and Conservative contender Byron Horner.

A dozen topics were covered via pre-written questions, including affordable housing, climate change, pharmacare, fiscal responsibility and gun control.

NanaimoNewsNOW tracked down one undecided voter in the partisan-heavy audience.

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Ron Usher of Parksville was most impressed with Marxist-Leninist contender Barbara Biley and the Green’s Sean Wood.

Usher doesn’t believe the riding will elect an MP who will have a voice in government.

“So we need somebody who’s going to be able to work with people, work with the community and figure out the politics of compromise and negotiation.”

Biley said the main political parties do whatever it takes to gain power, which she said is guided by focus groups and pollsters, as opposed to the real needs of Canadians.

“Which way is the wind blowing, that will determine what the parties say the next day,” Biley said. “And together those who call themselves the mainstream parties basically form a kind of cartel.”

She received steady applause throughout the evening.

The Liberals’ Jonah Gowans rounded out the candidates on stage.

Troy Whitley of the People’s Party of Canada was invited to the forum but didn’t show up.

Whitley is not officially listed as a candidate on the Elections Canada website. The full slate of candidates across the country will be made official on Wednesday, Oct. 2.

Johns won the 2015 election in Courtenay-Alberni by a fairly comfortable 6,900 vote margin over longtime Conservative MP John Duncan.

The vast, diverse riding includes all of the Oceanside communities, Courtenay, Port Alberni and Tofino-Ucluelet.

The federal election takes place on Monday, Oct. 21.

ian@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @reporterholmes