Pubdate: Mon, 09 Mar 2015
Source: Metro (Vancouver, CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 Metro Canada
Contact:  http://www.metronews.ca/vancouver
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3775
Author: Trish Kelly
Page: 10

LONG LIVE THE QUEEN OF EAST VAN

NDP all-candidates debate at Rio Theatre tonight could decide more
than who replaces Libby Davies

Since Libby Davies first became an MP in 1997, she has been the
unofficial queen of East Van. In December, Libby announced she will
not run again in the upcoming federal election. She has championed
issues that matter in East Van and it will be very hard to fill her
shoes. A few contenders are seeking the nomination to be the new NDP
candidate, and tonight, they will take to the stage at the Rio Theatre
in an all-candidates debate.

A co-founder of the Downtown Eastside Residents Association back in
the 1970s and a Vancouver city councillor for five consecutive terms,
Davies has spent over 30 years championing causes that are at the
heart of life in East Van like affordable housing and the call for a
national inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women.

I'm a resident of the riding and voting had been a no-brainer since I
first moved here, knowing that the elected MP is on the good side of
all the most crucial issues. I've always felt proud to know that I
live in a riding that often leads the country in progressive issues
like the Insite supervised injection site.

The Vancouver East riding reaches from the Downtown East Side to
Boundary Road. For the NDP, it's the safest seat in the whole country.
Davies has had a lot to do with that. It's terribly sad for East Van
to see her go, 18 years after she was first elected to Parliament.
Some kids born that year are now old enough to vote for her. Yes,
that's how long she'd been doing this. No wonder she's tired.

Four contenders will duke it out at the Rio tonight. Mable Elmore and
Jenny Kwan are both sitting MLAs, and each has been a strong advocate
on issues Davies has championed, from the rights of workers to
progressive drug policy.

There is also Scott McLean, SFU's director of public relations, who
launched his campaign by dropping an F- Bomb in his oped in the
Georgia Straight.

Gwen Geisbrecht, who ran municipally for the Vancouver School Board,
is also in the race. Each appeals to a different East Van
constituency.

It's an important decision. Davies' departure gives hope to Liberals
and Greens that a juicy B.C. seat could be up for grabs. The NDP needs
a candidate who can definitely keep the seat orange.

For those of us used to bragging about how our MP shows the rest of
the country how it's done, the NDP's choice of candidate will either
give us hope that East Van can remain an oasis in the creepy desert of
Stephen Harper's Conservatives, or force us to look for a new heir to
the East Van throne.
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MAP posted-by: Matt