Burnaby Politics: March 2005

Burnaby Willingdon: ESL?

Gabriel Yiu's campaign office windows have pictures of him all over them. However upon closer inspection, those signs are in Chinese and are promoting his book rather than his NDP candidacy. It would help if he got a new picture (and a different pair of glasses).

Burnaby North: Office Opening

Burnaby North MLA Richard Lee is having his campaign office opening on Sunday, April 3rd. Lee's office is on Hastings Street just east of Willingdon Avenue.

Burnaby-Willingdon: The Eunich

Far left NDP candidate Gabriel Yiu has held down a variety of media jobs where he plays the contrarian who attacks the Chinese community from a Chinese point of view. His funniest job however was at AM1470 Fairchild Radio in the 1990s, where he co-hosted a show on which his character was a figure from Chinese history who criticized government and stood up for the common man.

Where's the humour? Gabriel's character happened to be an eunich! Will the voters of Burnaby-Willingdon want the eunich to be the one who has the responsibility of standing up for them in Victoria?

Burquitlam: Pork Alert

Harry Bloy's riding just got another big dump of cash for Simon Fraser University, yesterday. Tens of millions of dollars are being put into the new Health Sciences building at SFU by the provincial government. Look for more announcements, pledges of funding, ground breaking ceremonies, and ribbon cuttings over the next seven and a half weeks as the BC Liberals try to show the people that the NDP are not yet an alternative option for government.

Election season all around

BCIT's Student Association is heading into it's election season. Chances are it will be as heated as the races for the real political offices that the older kids run for.

All politics are local: TEAM Burnaby Voters Association

With the non-Burnaby Citizens Assocation factions united under one banner going into this November's civic elections, the TEAM Burnaby Voters Association is billing itself as "The NEW voice for positive change in Burnaby."

The civic group will be debating policies on April 2 and April 11, according to their website.

Here's lookin' at Yiu, kid

According to a post from an NDP supporter on Rabble's Babble, "Gabriel Yiu's campaign in Burnaby-Willingdon has found a location for our campaign office. It's going to be in the building right next to the Bread Garden on Central Boulevard. Central Boulevard is the street that runs paralle [sic] to Skytrain next to Metrotown/Metropolis."

At least this typo is just an online one. I wonder when John Nuraney's campaign will follow in the footsteps of his challengers and start spelling words wrong?

The Feds: Tory Party

The Conservative Party of Canada, who held their policy convention this past weekend, are becoming more active in Peter Julian's Burnaby-New Westminster territory.

According to their website, last month they held a small pub night fundraiser, and next month rumour has it that Langley MP Mark Warawa will be speaking to them at a fundraising breakfast.

That looks much better than the neighbouring Burnaby-Douglas association on NDPer Bill Siskay's turf, whose events with MPs Stockwell Day and Peter MacKay - according to the photographs - were not well attended.

Greens

Is it too much to update the content of the Green Party website?

At least they have announced a nomination meeting so they can drag out four granolas to represent them in Burnaby. Maybe Joe Keithley will run again in Willingdon, unless he thinks the party will be DOA on May 17.

Now

In this weekend's Burnaby Now the best story comes from the letters page where a fringe candidate fires back at the paper for pointing out "word warts" in his press release from his Demoncratic Party. B.C. politics are cursed but this may be going a bit too far.

Newsleader

In political news this weekend, The NewsLeader points out this week's Ipsos-Reid poll that shows the BC Liberals leading the NDP by 14 points in the Lower Mainland. Despite this lead, Burnaby is still a key part of the battleground for both parties.

The paper reports that the City of Burnaby has a surplus, caused primarilly by provincial transfers, a housing boom, and an understaffed police detatchment.

Burnaby-Edmonds: OutRAJed NDPer

Raj Chouhan, the union boss turned NDP candidate (not that that is uniquely identifying), is off to a strong start. Nominated early for an NDP candidate (last November), Chouhan is everywhere in NDP circles, having a fundraiser last night with leader Carole James. (Surprisingly, the BC Liberal MLA Patty Sahota has not made an issue of his fundraiser taking place outside the riding in South Vancouver.) He also had former MLA Moe "The Premier Slayer" Sihota speak at a South Asian NDP candidates rally. He appears to be one of the more "organized" NDP candidates, but would you expect any less from the Canadian Farmworkers' Union boss?

His NDP page is as generic as the others, but at least he has a link to his real website, which is one of the better websites out there so far from any candidate for any party.

With the support of Moe, Chouhan has the other Sahota in trouble. The former riding of the late Fred Randall appears to be heading back to the NDP camp (unless it winds up 77-2 again).

Burnaby North: The Comeback Kid?

Pietro Calendino, the former NDP MLA, is back for his third battle with Richard T. Lee for the right to represent the residents of Burnaby North.

Calendino's NDP website is the generic NDP page for candidates who have yet to update their web content. Calendino's Burnaby Citizens municipal campaign page has more content, a point form bio, at this point. His City Council page is more of the same.

Calendino and Lee are too close to call, although Election Prediction gives it to the NDP already. If Calendino has a meltdown like he did in 2001 where he tore a strip off a voter at the Burnaby Board of Trade all-candidates debate he could throw this one to Lee, but at this point it's the NDP's to lose.

Burquitlam: The Incumbent

Harry Bloy, BC Liberal backbench MLA, is in his first term representing the riding that was created in 2001 after the redistribution. Of all the Burnaby MLAs, Bloy has the best understanding of the perpetual campaign that is required now that B.C. has a fixed election date.

Bloy's government website focuses on his accomplishments in the community. For some reason, much of this work makes mention of Simon Fraser University.

Bloy's BC Liberal website provides the background to Bloy but not much else.

Bloy's YourMLA site designed by Rhino Marketing Inc. is the most developed of the YourMLA.ca websites. BC Liberal candidates in the other three Tri-Cities ridings and in New Westminster are also participating in this cutting edge voter outreach website.

Election Prediction seems to show a degree of grassroots support for Bloy, although the NDP defenders have emerged as of late. As long as his campaign does not start to put up signs saying "Burquitlam Loves Harry Bloy," he should continue to be the favourite in his rematch with NDP candidate Bart Healey.