After barring former candidate Jonas Smith, the Conservative Party of Canada has named a new Yukon candidate.
Long-time Yukoner, former public servant and author Barbara Dunlop will be running under the blue banner. She made her announcement on Aug. 17.
“I feel strongly that Yukon should have a choice of representation on the ballot. I think it’s really important that they have an option to pick a conservative candidate. And so I put my name forward,” she said.
“I’ve had some great opportunities over the years to work with local businesses and to help support building local businesses. I think that’s one of the things that I can bring to the job,” she said.
Dunlop recently retired as Director of Policy, Planning and Communications within the government’s department of economic development. She was also Yukon Film Commissioner, in addition to being well-known as a commercially successful romance novelist. She raised two children in the Yukon with her husband Gordon Dunlop and currently lives in Golden Horn.
Dunlop said recovering economically from the impact of the pandemic will be the most important campaign issue.
When she found out that Smith had been dropped from the party, she put her name forward. She said she is pro-vaccine and doesn’t have a lot of information on why Smith was dropped from the ballot.
“I think that everyone should work with their health care providers and take advice from scientists and experts and hopefully decide that it’s in their interest, in the interest of their loved ones to get a vaccine,” she said.
Dunlop described herself as a moderate, with strong ties to the business community in the Yukon from years of working in government.
“I think that the centre of the political spectrum is where a whole lot of Canadians are,” she said.
“I talk to my friends who are moderate conservatives, and I talk to my friends who are centrist liberals. And it’s pretty hard to tell the difference. So many of them say they are fiscally conservative, and they’re socially progressive,” she said. “That’s exactly how I feel.”
Contact Haley Ritchie at haley.ritchie@yukon-news.com