A former District of 樱桃视频Council member is trying his hand at provincial politics. Lyle Fenton will run in the May 17 provincial election under the New Democratic Party banner.
Fenton put his name forward to be the West Vancouver-Garibaldi NDP candidate and nobody else expressed an interest by the deadline for nominees to come forward March 31.
Fenton picks up the NDP torch from Barry MacLeod, a Lions Bay resident and retired school psychologist who ran for the NDP in this riding in the 2001 provincial election.
MacLeod finished in third place behind Green Party candidate Peter Tatroff and Liberal MLA Ted Nebbeling.Fenton said there is great interest in NDP in this riding right now.
"I haven't seen this much support of the NDP in this riding for some time and it is really encouraging," said Fenton.
He said there is significant interest in his party from people in West Vancouver, a part of the riding that traditionally offers very little support to the NDP.
Fenton is going up against B.C. Liberal candidate Joan McIntyre while the Green Party is running Dennis Perry.
McIntyre is trying to keep the riding in Liberal hands after Nebbeling announced his decision to resign from politics when this term ends. Nebbeling served as the West Vancouver-Garibaldi MLA for nine years.
Perry is trying to improve the 2001 Green Party result when Nebbeling took 68 per cent of the votes. Tatroff only had 17 per cent support. Fenton has significant ground to make up from MacLeod's 11 per cent showing.
Former Lions Bay mayor Brenda Broughton placed second in the balloting behind Nebbeling in 1996 when she won 29 per cent support compared to Nebbeling's 57 per cent.
Fenton said he is going into the race looking for a win.
"There's a possibility to win," he said. "It is a tough riding."
He plans to challenge the Gordon Campbell record on health care and education through the election campaign.
The government's seeming lack of caring and tendency to private things will be central to his campaign, Fenton said.
"I know first hand the quality of cleaning at hospitals," he said. "The quality of cleaning at our local hospital has gone downhill."
The former BC Rail employee is now working as a casual/on-call employee in the maintenance department at 樱桃视频General Hospital.
The constituency association has an election information telephone line in place and a campaign office will soon open in the Mountain View building on Second Avenue.
A nomination meeting to acclaim Fenton is scheduled for Sunday (April 17) at the Sea to Sky Hotel at 2 p.m. North Vancouver councillor and NDP candidate Craig Keating is the guest speaker.
The meeting is open to everyone, Fenton said.
