Niagara quickly back into campaign mode

Candidates in the Niagara Falls riding have barely taken a breath before they’re back on the campaign trail. The two declared candidates have simply picked up where they left off after the byelection two months ago.

IN NDP incumbent Wayne Gates Fort Erie campaign office, a tower of lawn signs is ready to go: “It’s a good thing the byelection was just eight weeks ago, I still have the lawn signs.”

Ask both Gates and P.C. candidate Bart Maves and they’ll tell you: “The main issues are the same as they were a couple of months ago. It’s about jobs. Niagara was one of the hardest hit areas of the province.”

The loss of manufacturing jobs and jobs at the Fort Erie race track.

“What are we going to do about jobs. What about the Fort Erie race track and the slots.

Both NDP leader Andrea Horwath and P.C. Leader Tim Hudak invested a lot of time in the riding during the byelection campaign. One or the other were in Niagara Falls every other day.

Even though we’ve been anticipating a provincial election campaign for months, the Liberals in the Niagara Falls riding still do not have a declared candidate. Niagara Falls
councillor Joyce Morocco hasn’t returned our phone calls but word is, she’s not interested in running again.

Despite Morocco’s personal popularity, the Liberals came a distant third in the byelection. The NDP took a share of the Liberal vote. The result, an NDP victory in a
riding that hasn’t been NDP in nearly 20 years. The most recent poll results show NDP support across the province has slipped. While the PC’s are in the lead.

Bart Maves says he doesn’t put a lot of faith in polls: “I remember a poll the night before the last byelection that said I would lose by 18 per cent. And I lost by 2 per cent. I really don’t put a lot of stock in polls. They’re just snapshots in time.”

It’s expected to be another close horse race between Wayne Gates and Bart Maves. Niagara Falls has always been a bell weather riding. Chances are, whichever party wins here will likely form the next government.