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Ontario Greens leader visits Orangeville for riding tour with local candidate

January 16, 2025   ·   0 Comments

Holding to their local roots, the Ontario Green Party is in Dufferin-Caledon to meet with residents face-to-face.

Sandy Brown, former Orangeville mayor and current representative for the Greens in Dufferin-Caledon, was joined by Green Leader Mike Schreiner as they toured the riding in a boots-on-the-ground campaign, aiming to meet with locals, hear their concerns and priorities, and make inroads into challenging what they see as a traditionally conservative riding.

They met with constituents at Pia’s on Broadway on Tuesday, Jan. 14.

“This riding has been historically conservative for decades now,” Brown said. “The incumbent has very important jobs as Deputy Premier and Minister of Health.”

He said that the Green Party wants to challenge voters to consider why they support the Conservative Party and potentially change their minds.

“I don’t know that a lot has been happening in Dufferin Caledon that’s been proactive in helping the constituency here,” Brown said. “Because the Conservative Party, both federally and provincially think this is a fait accompli, that they don’t have to spend any time, energy or money on this riding,”

“I think we’re going to change that and reach some minds here. We’re going to be challenging people, and asking them, why are you voting conservative?”

Brown is being supported in this campaign closely by Green Leader Mike Schreiner. Both he and Brown said that the best way to reach people is to do the legwork and meet with them, and that gives the Greens a grounding he says other parties might lack.

“What we’ve learned in politics is that it’s face to face, meeting people, making sure they see you, what you are, what you stand for, what kind of person you are, how you speak, is the key to getting a vote,” Brown said. “So we will be canvassing hard all through Dufferin–Caledon for as long as it takes. And the more doors we knock on, the better chance we’re going to have.”

Schreiner added that despite it being a more lengthy process, he prefers it this way, as it keeps the party grounded in what it stands for.

“We know that us Greens have to work harder than other parties to get elected,” he said. “But the good thing about that is, when we are elected, we keep working harder than other parties too. And working with parties is something we can do.”

Schreiner said that a focus going forward for the Greens is to prepare a united front with other parties in Ontario and Canada as tariffs proposed by incoming President of the United States Donald Trump loom closer.

“I think we should be focused particularly on pushing back against the Trump tariffs in a united front, across party lines, across jurisdictional lines, for a team Canada approach to defend Ontario workers, Ontario jobs and Ontario businesses,” he said.

“I’m encouraged that governments are drawing up a list of retaliatory tariffs, though I hope it doesn’t come to that, but if the US chooses to move in that direction, I think we have to stick up for Canada and implement retaliatory tariffs,” Schreiner said. “I think regardless, we’re also going to have to be prepared to invest more to support Canadian businesses, Ontario businesses, Ontario workers, and the self-sufficiency of our economy.”

Wrapping up their meet and greet, and preparing to move forward with their door-to-door campaign, they wanted to reiterate the flexibility their party offers voters, being that they aren’t restricted to party lines and can vote with their constituents.

“Mike’s been elected. We also have Aislinn Clancy and Kitchener center, who was elected,” Brown said. “I talked to both of them and they’re committed to their constituency.”

“With the Ontario Greens, I don’t have to vote the same way as Mike votes, unlike Sylvia Jones who cannot vary from the party policy of Doug Ford. So when I am elected as a member of parliament, I can take what the constituency wants and I can vote that way,” he added.

As Brown and Schreiner prepare to take their campaign to the streets, they remain focused on building connections and challenging the status quo.


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