John Streicker’s campaign got off to a rocky start.
The Yukon Green party candidate showed up at his first campaign rally half an hour late.
He thought the kickoff was at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday - not 4 p.m.
The mix-up is a small setback, considering Green Leader Elizabeth May is being shut out of the televised debates.
“We recognize that it will be a challenge for us to get elected,” said Streicker. “We didn’t choose the party because we thought it would be easy for us to get elected, we chose the party because it puts forward principles and values that we feel are right for the Yukon and for Canada.”
There are a number of issues, from the environment to the economy, that will be important in this election, but governance and democracy is the number one issue for Streicker.
“Parliament is in crisis,” he said. “It’s not finding a way to represent the voices or the interests of people.
“Instead, it’s very reflective of partisan voices. We need to find a way to bring the voice of people back into politics.”
With voter turnout below 60 per cent nationally - even lower for younger voters - Streicker sees an opportunity for all the candidates to work toward a common cause.
“The first thing I did was call up all the other candidates and ask that we work together as a group to raise the vote from 60 per cent to 75 per cent,” said Streicker. “I’ve gotten some really positive feedback.”
He has also approached Bringing Youth Toward Equality to organize a nonpartisan forum to help engage younger voters. It’s something Streicker hopes all the candidates work on together.
Reaching across the aisle and engaging political rivals is part of the Green party’s philosophy.
The partisan politics that have typified so much of the national discourse is something Streicker wants to avoid.
“One of the differences is that other parties tend to run on fear,” he said. “Fear of the other party, of policies, of people. We want to put forward politics of vision.”
Streicker hopes that running a more positive campaign that focuses on solutions rather than problems will resonate with voters.
“I’m not running against the Liberals or Conservatives,” said Streicker. “I’m running for the Yukon.”
Contact Josh Kerr at
joshk@yukon-news.com