I was on CBC TV last night for a few seconds.  My words were also played on a few radio spots.  I said that I'd attended every event in the campaign and Erin Peters hadn't, so people were obviously voting for the party, not the candidate they didn't know.  One person said that I sounded frustrated.  This is absolutely not the case.  I was stating facts, but with absolutely no rancour.

The broadcast bits were a small snippet out of a long conversation where I repeatedly and explicitly stated that I had nothing negative to say about the results or Erin.  I heard a fair bit of negativity during the campaign from voters, blaming her for not showing up.  I always corrected them.  That's not what Erin signed up to do.  The NDP riding association couldn't find a candidate so Erin agreed to allow her name to be used as an out-of-riding paper candidate.  That was the deal and I absolutely respect her for that.  The final numbers reflect the will of the voters and they voted nationally. Read more »

This was a massive Green win.  We all know that long ago the party made getting Elizabeth elected priority #1.  The gamble paid off.

The Green media coverage for the last two weeks nationally was minimal to nil because Elizabeth was in Saanich--Gulf Islands and as a knock-on effect from the debate exclusion.  That hurt across the country because the national campaign counts for about 85% of the vote.  The whole context will be different in the next election.  Greens finally have a voice that cannot be denied, and a powerful one.

We sacrificed a large number of pawns to get one to the far end of the board.  Now she's a queen and that's a game-changer.  The trade-off was absolutely worth it.

My deep thanks to everyone who helped in the campaign with their time and money.  Thanks also for the words of encouragement I’ve received from so many directions.  Greens have a vision and a path.  Last night we took a tremendous step along it.

There are many more steps to go.  I hope that we'll take them together.