Green Party looks to build political sway beyond British Columbia
Green Party looks to build political sway beyond British Columbia
1 hour ago
THE CANADIAN PRESS
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May makes an announcement at the National Press Theatre, in Ottawa, on Aug. 22, 2016.
Justin Tang/THE CANADIAN PRESS
The surprise role of power-broker played by British Columbia's Green Party in the provincial election, which has pushed the party up in national polls, has seen an increase in people looking to run as candidates against Justin Trudeau's Liberals, the federal Green leader said.
Greens in the Pacific Coast province, with just three seats in the knife-edge May 9 election, joined forces with the New Democrat Party (NDP) on May 29 to unseat the incumbent Liberals who had been in power for 16 years.
The Greens were wooed by both sides for two heady weeks before pitching their lot with the NDP, which agreed to take up issues they have in common in return for the support.
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The Greens' ability to govern alongside the left-leaning New Democrats will serve as a litmus test for other provincial and federal parties ahead of next year's election in Ontario, Canada's most populous province, and a national election in 2019.
The party says it has long suffered from would-be supporters voting for parties they see as more likely to hold power.
"We've been fighting for years against the notion that a Green vote is a wasted vote," federal Green Party leader Elizabeth May, the only Green member of Parliament, told Reuters.
"(Now) citizens across Canada get used to the idea that electing Greens actually helps you get better government."
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Green Party looks to build political sway beyond British Columbia
1 hour ago
THE CANADIAN PRESS
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May makes an announcement at the National Press Theatre, in Ottawa, on Aug. 22, 2016.
Justin Tang/THE CANADIAN PRESS
The surprise role of power-broker played by British Columbia's Green Party in the provincial election, which has pushed the party up in national polls, has seen an increase in people looking to run as candidates against Justin Trudeau's Liberals, the federal Green leader said.
Greens in the Pacific Coast province, with just three seats in the knife-edge May 9 election, joined forces with the New Democrat Party (NDP) on May 29 to unseat the incumbent Liberals who had been in power for 16 years.
The Greens were wooed by both sides for two heady weeks before pitching their lot with the NDP, which agreed to take up issues they have in common in return for the support.
Story continues below advertisement
The Greens' ability to govern alongside the left-leaning New Democrats will serve as a litmus test for other provincial and federal parties ahead of next year's election in Ontario, Canada's most populous province, and a national election in 2019.
The party says it has long suffered from would-be supporters voting for parties they see as more likely to hold power.
"We've been fighting for years against the notion that a Green vote is a wasted vote," federal Green Party leader Elizabeth May, the only Green member of Parliament, told Reuters.
"(Now) citizens across Canada get used to the idea that electing Greens actually helps you get better government."
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