The By-Election is On!

Election Day: September 8


UPCOMING EVENTS:

Office Kick-Off Party
Thursday at 8 pm
Office @ the corner of Gordon & Wellington

Young Greens of Canada Weekend
August 8-10
Register for the Friday meeting here, will update with weekend activities soon!


WHY THIS BY-ELECTION IS DIFFERENT
By: Jim Harris

No candidate has waited for the Guelph by-election to officially begin with greater anticipation than Mike Nagy. All signs indicate that this election will be a breakthrough for the Greens and that Guelph will elect Canada’s first Green MP.

Guelph is unique. The Green vote has steadily increased in every provincial and federal election since 1997. Just eight months ago, provincial Green candidate Ben Polley won 20 percent of the vote - 9,635 votes – just behind the Conservatives and almost 3,000 votes ahead of the NDP.

In last October’s provincial election the Green Party won in 44 polls compared to 11 for the Conservatives and only four for the NDP.

Since October, growth in Green support has continued. The Nagy campaign team starts out with over 200 registered volunteers, the first fully-funded campaign budget in the Green Party’s history, and the only candidate with experience from two other federal election contests.

The Nagy campaign will reflect Green Party values. It is fully volunteer-based. The campaign will have no paid staff, demonstrating a real engagement with the local community. The Nagy campaign is taking every opportunity to engage the local economy by supporting local vendors and service providers. As in the past, the campaign is monitoring and reducing its carbon footprint through use of public transit, cycling and purchasing carbon credits.

In this by-election, the strategic vote is a Green vote. Regardless of the outcome on September 8th, voters in Guelph will not change the government. But a Green victory will be heard around the world. Over the next six weeks, Mike Nagy will be working hard to convince voters that Guelph can have the biggest impact not by voting for an old-line candidate, but by truly shaking things up with a Green win.

Mike Nagy is the only candidate to have run before in a federal election. He is widely respected for his work as the Green Party of Canada's Environment Critic, and for his leadership in local environmental issues. He carries over 20 years in business experience and has a record of community service that includes over 50 donations of blood to the Red Cross and a citation for bravery from the Mayor of Toronto and Metro Toronto Police.

He notes, “Electing another Liberal, NDP or Conservative in Guelph will change nothing for Guelphites in Ottawa. In this by-election, I am confident that Guelph will show that Canadians are ready for change. Guelph’s Going Green”.