Election 2019: Conservatives to take the lead in Kelowna Lake Country
KELOWNA – There are still a few weeks left until you have to decide who to vote for in the federal election but a quick look at the 338Canada interactive map that was updated Oct. 2 reveals change may be afoot in the Central Okanagan.
The Kelowna-Lake Country riding, which is currently held by Liberal MP Stephen Fuhr, has inched toward being Conservative again according to the map.
The current breakdown is 43 per cent in favour of Conservative candidate Tracy Gray, 33.4 per cent in favour of Liberals, 10.2 per cent Green and 9.3 per cent NDP.
It’s not entirely unexpected for Kelowna to return to its Conservative history. That said predictions from the last election cycle were similar to this week's news, and that turned out to be wrong.
Throughout the 338 federal electoral districts, city centres are mostly leaning red (and orange), while rural districts generally tend to lean blue.
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Election 2019: Voters Toolkit
Given that there’s still time to decide, we want to offer you a bit more insight into what these candidates have to offer.
How tuned in are local candidates to the issues you are dealing with every day?
Do they understand what it is that’s causing your neighbourhood to flourish or suffer?
We wanted to know, so we asked what they believed to be the biggest issue in their riding and what, if anything, they could do about it?
Justin Kulik, NDP candidate for Kelowna Lake Country
Affordability in a green economy is without a doubt, the biggest issue specifically affecting Kelowna–Lake Country. Seniors on fixed incomes and working people are facing increasing costs of living after being failed by previous and current governments. The dollar simply doesn’t go as far in Kelowna–Lake Country as it does in much of Canada. But I’m not looking for just a five per cent rebate on this, and a 2.5 per cent reduction on that.
I’m here for real, concrete steps to help with affordability for everyone. Housing is not as affordable as it used to be. Growing numbers of families are being forced out of the place they call home because as the cost of living increases, their incomes remain stagnant. We also face some of the highest cell phone bills in the world.
That’s why New Democrats have committed to capping cell phone bills, to give some relief to those who of us paying significantly more than most of our friends across the world. We have a bold plan to tackle affordability. And we will pay for it by implementing a one per cent wealth tax on those with over $20 million. That’s the top tenth of the top one per cent of people.
But we need to consider our environment as well. These last summers, Kelowna–Lake Country has burned and flooded (at the same time), while the air quality index advised against going outside and breathing the air. Without action, climate change is only getting worse, and the air will not get better.
MP Stephen Fuhr, Liberal candidate for Kelowna Lake Country
One of the biggest issues in our community is housing availability and affordability. The Government of Canada has put a 55 billion National Housing Strategy in place to assist the provinces with housing challenges.
As a re-elected MP I would work to ensure Kelowna-Lake Country was positioned to maximize this opportunity.
Tracy Gray, Conservative candidate for Kelowna Lake Country
Harmful tax proposals and changes to a small business as well as overall affordability are the top items I hear about through all my conversations. The Trudeau Liberals seem to be out of touch with challenges faced by businesses, young adults, families, and seniors.
Gasoline. Groceries. Home heating. Real estate. Debt. Everything keeps getting more expensive. People are barely getting by. And they’re definitely not getting ahead. We have a plan; one that will allow you to leave more money in your pocket so you can get ahead.
As your Member of Parliament, I will ensure that we repeal harmful tax changes to small business owners, fix the mortgage stress test which affects home buyers, implement a children’s fitness and arts and learning tax credit and remove GST from home heating just to name a few of our initiatives.
The Green Party candidate Travis Ashley and the PPC candidate John Barr have yet to respond to their questionnaire. New independent candidates Daniel Joseph and Silverado Socrates will be on the ballot on Oct. 21 and were recently confirmed on the Elections Canada website. We will be reaching out to them.
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