Kevin Berger – Leader Staff
I don’t think I’ve ever had an easier time of deciding who to vote for than this year’s federal election.
Although I won’t say outright who I’m supporting, I think it’ll be pretty obvious where my vote is going this election if you keep on reading.
First, there is an extremely narrow field of candidates in this constituency, as incumbent and Conservative MLA Arnold Viersen faces two challengers: Green Party candidate Peter Nygaard, who was profiled in last week’s Leader, and People’s Party of Canada (PPC) candidate John Schrader, who you can read more about on Page A2 as well as on his Facebook page.
Yes, there are no NDP or Liberal candidates running in Peace River-Westlock, as far as I can tell. I reached out to both parties to determine if there was a candidate and never got a response.
But perhaps that should not be surprising - the likelihood of this riding going for the Liberals or the NDP is slim to none.
So with only three choices, my vote will be decided by the issues I’m concerned most about.
Anyone who’s read my columns with any regularity knows the key issue that will affect my vote: climate change. And I’m not alone - an Abacus Data poll in July found that 29 per cent of respondents identified climate change as one of their top three issues.
Cost of living and the economy are certainly important, but I also recognize that unless we make an effort to address climate change, the cost of living will only increase as the environment becomes more inhospitable.
Anyway, the PPC has made it clear that they regard climate change as a hoax and the local candidate seems to agree, judging from his Facebook posts.
The Conservatives have a better approach to the issue, as they at least acknowledge the severity of the climate crisis and agree that Canada should strive to meet the Paris agreement targets for CO2 reduction.
However, there have been several reviews of Andrew Scheer’s plan for the environment and they’ve determined that it would accomplish less than the federal carbon levy, which he has swore to reverse. And based on my own read of Scheer’s climate plan, I can’t disagree with those assessments.
With that in mind, there’s pretty well only one option left. But I’m not just a voter - I’m also covering this election as a reporter.
But if you’re at all concerned about any bias on my part, I promise that I will strive to report on this election as fairly and impartially as I can, just as I have done with past elections.
