Recently, the federal Liberal Party filled out its slate of four candidates who are ready to hit the hustings in the Regina area should the minority Conservative government be defeated in a non-confidance vote which could come as soon as March 22 when Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is scheduled to deliver the 2011-12 budget.
Joining incumbent MP Ralph Goodale in Wascana are Jacqueline Miller (Regina-Qu’Appelle), Monica Lysack (Lumsden-Lake Centre) and Russell Collicot (Palliser).
Miller (pictured) holds a BA in Political Studies & Psychology from the University of Regina, and will be looking to unseat incumbent Conservative MP Andrew Scheer. The mother of four, and grandmother of two, Miller is self-employed and works in the field of community well-being. The NDP, meanwhile, have yet to nominate a candidate in the riding (Regina City Councillor Fred Clipsham recently announced his intention to seek the nod), while the Green Party candidate is Gregory Chatterson, a brick layer from Fort Qu’Appelle.
In Lumsden-Lake Centre, Lysack will be going against incumbent Conservative MP Tom Lukiwski. It’ll be a rematch of the 2008 election, when Lysack finished third in the riding behind Lukiwski and the NDP candidate Fred Cress. Prior to running in the 2008 election Lysack had been active in the area of child care advocacy. Running for the NDP this time around is musician Brian Sklar. The Green Party has yet to nominate its candidate.
In Palliser, Collicott will be going up against incumbent Conservative MP Ray Boughen. This was the most tightly contested riding of the three captured by Conservative MPs in the 2008 election, with Boughen receiving 44 per cent of the vote, NDP candidate Don Mitchell 33 per cent and Liberal candidate Cal Johnson 17 per cent. A project manager with Graham Construction, Collicott doesn’t enjoy the same name-recognition as Johnson, the former chief of the Regina City Police, so it’ll be interesting to see if he can build on the success Johnson had. Running for the NDP is lawyer Noah Evanchuk, while provincial leader Larissa Shasko is the Green Party candidate according to the Green Party of Canada website.
As far as Wascana goes, Goodale is the only declared candidate thus far, although University of Regina Education professor Marc Spooner recently announced his intention to seek the NDP nomination.
