There are two types of people whom we want to elect. The reformer, and the servant.
For this election, I am endorsing two political candidates for Member of Parliament. Why only two? The first caveat for me to endorse is that I would first have to meet any candidate in person; I've met a bunch, but nowhere near the thousand-plus vying for a job in Ottawa, so I'll limit my support to these two. The risk of course, is that my endorsement may actually harm them on Election Day, so I wait until the last minute and endorse quietly only here on my Facebook page. An association with me could in fact be hazardous politically, and being aware of this reality, I steer clear of associating with either. We are not exactly allies; in fact, one was my former political opponent. My recommendation to vote for these two candidates is a result of outside observation, combined with in-person evaluation. My first priority is to the voters themselves, ensuring that I do not advise them to support anyone who does not have their best interests at heart.
Note: There were three I was willing to endorse, but one had to bow out of his campaign. I'll re-load that endorsement in a future election.
For now, we focus on two: the reformer and the servant.
Who is a reformer? This is not someone who stems from the "right-wing" (or the left wing) politically, but rather, this is anyone of any political stripe who seeks to come into parliament with a purpose of fundamentally reforming how our government acts and thinks. Bringing monumental shifts as part of their election platform, the reformer, while willing to compromise when it comes to working with other various parties to achieve their common-goals, remains fundamentally opposed to compromising his values or integrity to assist in making things politically expedient. The reformer is not an opportunist, he is dedicated to permanent and meaningful change and will never "sell-out" just to snag a six-figure salary or secure a pension. The reformer cares not about such things. He instead cares only about the changes he has identified that must be brought forth. He tells you what those changes would be, and how they would occur, in advance - to the best of his abilities - making, and intending to keep, promises to see these changes through to completion. He is straight-forward, honest, accessible, and noble in his intent. He is supported by people who for years have seen him practice what he preaches. He is real. And so his chances for electoral success in the short-term are scant. Nonetheless, he is the type we need in Ottawa.
The other type, is the servant.
This is the guy who seeks to work within this system to address the concerns of his constituents. His bills and corresponding speeches are dictated primarily by the knocks he receives on his door from local citizens. When they bring genuine concerns, he rises in the House of Commons to address them. This servant has led his party in words spoken from the House of Commons floor in the past few years - his first on the job.
He's the type that carries the potential of the great Chuck Cadman, who famously stood against his party leader - voted against his leaders orders - and carried out the wishes of the vast majority of his voters. This ultimately cost him his seat in the party, and he subsequently became elected as an Independent, reminding us of two things we don't see anymore: Politicians bucking their party whip, and Independents being chosen on Election Day.
The moment has not come, and it may never arrive, where this MP has had or gets the opportunity to rise up against his own party directive, but the key in endorsing for me is knowing what he's made of in advance of that moment arriving.
Is this the type of guy, who if approached by a majority of citizens, would do what THEY instruct rather than what his party instructs?
I say he is, and so I endorse.
I ran against this guy, and while I got along great with the rest of my opponents on the 2011 ballot, I did not feel particularly close or connected to this one. "Who's this dude?", I thought. Another cat who used to work for a bank". I had little time for him, and perhaps less for his party.
While naively hoping for a victory myself, my secondary hope was that another candidate besides this one would be the winner in our riding if it wasn't me. I was wrong. This man has done an excellent job representing his constituents; driven by genuine care. If you call him on a Sunday, he answers. If you need some assistance, he provides. If you seek remedy from an MP in another riding, and you're getting nowhere, he picks up the mantle of help, without pulling the "you're not in my riding" card used regularly by the others. He gives a damn; realizes that he's handcuffed in providing certain remedies, and does whatever he can to aid using the tools at his disposal, limited as they may be.
He's a good man.
They both are. These are the types of people we need to elect: the true reformer, and the true servant.
The reformer is Tim Moen.
The servant is Jasbir Sandhu.
Elect them.
That gives us two on our side.
