The New Westminster Progressive Electors Coalition plans to run candidates for mayor, city council and school board in this year’s municipal election.
Daniel Fontaine, a founding member of the coalition, recently announced the group had received approvals to form a non-profit society. Its next step is to form a registered electoral organization.
“You can just go and become an electoral association, but we felt that it would be, from a transparency perspective and from a governance perspective, really good for us to have a non-profit society,” he said. “We are intending to be around well past the next election, so it would allow us a bit of a framework to work just beyond the formalized elector process.”
The coalition established in November 2017 with the goal of putting forward new ideas and a diversity of opinions at city hall. About 70 people attended the group’s inaugural neighbourhood networking night on Jan. 18.
“We were very thrilled. We anticipated 20 to 30 people, and we got an overwhelming response,” Fontaine said. “It was a mix-and-mingle, but we did have announcement to make. I did announce that evening that we had just received approval to form a non-profit society. We had just received all our paperwork from Victoria.”
According to Fontaine, people attending the recent networking event included residents who have been affiliated with the NDP, B.C. Green Party, federal and provincial Liberal parties and federal Conservatives.
“It was a real mix of people, which is what the whole coalition part is about,” he said. “As I indicated to the committee and to the group that was assembled there, it’s really important to me and it’s really important to the New Westminster Progressives that we leave all these provincial and federal political influences at the door and that we work together and that we put New Westminster first.”
Fontaine said the number 1 thing he heard from people attending the recent gathering was a concern that all seven members of city council were endorsed by the New Westminster and District Labour Council, something he doesn’t think is healthy for democracy.
“We need to have different perspectives,” he said. “We need to have some folks on council that are not all from the same political organization.”
While the coalition is intending to run candidates for mayor, councillor and school trustee, Fontaine said it won’t be seeking to fill all the positions on city council and the board of education.
“I don’t know the exact number of people that will run – it will really depend who approaches and who is interested in running and making sure they are really good, top-quality candidates – but what I can tell you is that the volunteers on the steering committee have been very clear that we are not going to run a full slate for school board and for the council,” he said. “We really feel it’s important that there be at least one or two voices that, if the electorate were to vote all New West Progressives, that we would not control 100 per cent of council or school board. We just don’t think that that is good governance.”
And just what does Fontaine say about speculation that he plans to run for mayor?
“I am looking at all my options. I am looking at the community response to the New West Progressives, and I am seeing how many people are signing up at the neighbourhood nights for volunteering,” he said. “I have said to the group, if I see there is a real groundswell of support and grassroots support from the community that is encouraging people like me to put their names forward.”
Fontaine said the coalition will be establishing a process for selecting and announcing its candidates, with an announcement expected in May or June. Normally held in November, this year’s election is on Saturday, Oct. 20.
“It is going to be here before we know it. I keep telling everyone, if you think you have lots of time, nine months is basically a blink of an eye. And because the election is happening in October, not November this year, it has changed the dynamic a bit. Typically, you’d open up your campaign office after Labour Day and all that stuff, but now it’s backed up into August,” Fontaine said. “Summer campaigning – it will be interesting to watch.”
