Election limbo

On your marks, get set ... wait?

With another minority government that may fall at any moment, local riding associations have to be in a state of perpetual readiness for an election. 

On the outside Parliament Hill stays calm, but on the inside an election may be brewing.

But with MPs and party leaders singing a chorus of 'We're ready,' what does it take to get local riding associations to the starting block?

States of play

In the Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington riding, NDP volunteers have been contacted and an experienced team of campaign organizers is at attention, "ready as they ever are," says Ross Sutherland, the riding association president.

The biggest hurdle for Sutherland's team is that they don't yet have a candidate.  So, the first order of business if an election is called will be to hold a nomination meeting. 

Luckier riding associations have a party candidate already on board. Ottawa Centre Green Party candidate Jen Hunter will be running for the second time, meaning Kevin O'Donnell, riding association president for the Ottawa Centre Green Party, has posters that can be recycled into the next election.

"We've held a few campaign meetings to get the core team lined up and since Jen is returning as a candidate for the second time, that's going to be a lot easier," says O'Donnell. This includes having a roster of seasoned volunteers who can help campaign. 

David McGuinty, Liberal MP for Ottawa South, has also been running in elections since 2004, but insists it's still “all about the hard work.”

"We are just about as ready as anyone could be because we never stopped from the last election." – Betty Crockett, Conservative riding association president for Eglin-Middlesex-London.

The devil is in the details

The work includes more than just contacting volunteers and putting up signs, but also liaising with the national party leader, developing a strategy by neighbourhood, and the smaller details like collecting 100 signatures to get a candidate's name on the ballot, says O'Donnell.  

O'Donnell says he uses election results that are released poll-by-poll and the raw geographic information released by Elections Canada in planning how to wage his campaign. He has also developed computer software that lets the Green Party share information gathered by individual ridings.

Riding associations are also kept updated by the materials the national office sends out, says O'Donnell. On top of that, candidates already have a weekly call from the national leader, Elizabeth May.

While O'Donnell admits his riding association has not called for volunteers yet, the Green Electoral District Association has monthly newsletters keeping previous volunteers updated on their progress.

O'Donnell's previous campaign cost about $60,000 but because they got less than 10 per cent of the vote, none of it was reimbursed by Elections Canada. He has a smaller budget to work with this time around.

Kevin O'Donnell is the president of the Ottawa Centre Green Party riding association.

Betty Crockett, Conservative riding association president for Elgin-Middlesex-London, employs a strategy similar to  O'Donnell's because Tory MP Joe Preston will be running again. "We keep all our material from the last election including results and we have fundraisers to have the funds available to run the election."

Because of the large area of the riding association, Crockett explains how the party separates the ridings into smaller areas. Associations then try and fundraise in each area to make it easier for people to come out to events such as dinner theatre, picnics and brunches with keynote speakers.

'Ready as we'll ever be'

The New Westminster, Coquitlam and Port Moody electoral district in British Columbia is facing a different situation. In April, the NDP MP for the riding, Dawn Black, stepped down to run provincially. This means a by-election will be called by October 13.

Greg Wilson, a media spokesperson for Liberal MP candidate Ken Beck Lee, says that because of the looming by-election the Liberal team has been ready for the past three months.

If a federal election were called tomorrow, Wilson says, the only thing his team need do is file the nomination papers.

"We are hoping it isn't called because we've already been through this less than a year ago," says Crockett. "But you have to be ready in case it happens."

Front page photo courtesy of: elcivics.com

General Federal Election 2008 Spending

Candidates in each riding association are allocated funds from the provincial wing of the party to fund their campaign. If a candidate receives more than 10 per cent of the total vote, he or she is entitled to a 60 per cent reimbursement of their total election expenses from the government.

Of the 60 per cent reimbursement, 15 per cent is immediately given to the candidate, while the remaining 45 per cent is held until approval.

Once approved, the remaning funds are issued to the candidate to be divided.

For example, if a campaign spends $80,000, and receives at least 10 per cent of the total vote:

• 60 per cent reimbursement = $48,000
• 15 per cent (of 60 per cent reimbursement) returned immediately = $7,200
• Remaining 45 per cent returned once approved = $40,800