Riding To Watch
I was reading Jacques Poitras blog about 10 ridings to watch. His list is a good one, and is worth checking out.
Another race to watch, that didn’t make Jacques list, is the riding of Hampton-Kings. Last time around, it was not a close race as Hampton-Belleisle. Harrison won in 2003 by 746 votes.
So why is this one more interesting this time around, you might ask??? Redistribution. This riding has gained areas from the former Kennebecasis riding. That’s right, Brenda Fowlie’s riding in 2003, where she won by only 19 votes. Travel around these rural areas and ask about Fowlie’s representation and people do not give glowing reviews. You’ll be sure to hear about the main road that was closed due to a washout from the sping, until just a week or so ago. It was a major inconvienience for most everyone in the area.
Oh and to add a bit more to the mix, this riding is also gaining parts of Liberal MLA Stuart Jamieson’s Saint John Fundy riding. Further, some of the territory lost in redistribution, was pretty solid Conservative support. This probably explains why Mr.Harrison has been hitting the rural areas campaigning so hard, even before the writ was dropped. How much of a difference will this make? To early to tell, but depending on who the Liberal’s come up with, (they seem to be taking their sweet time with a candidate) it could be a horse race. Putting this one down as a definite "one to watch"........stay tuned!
**Edit- Since I posted this last night, the Liberal's site has been updated, and they have indeed chosen a candidate for this riding. Linda Watson. It appears there are only 4 ridings without Liberal Candidates now.
Another race to watch, that didn’t make Jacques list, is the riding of Hampton-Kings. Last time around, it was not a close race as Hampton-Belleisle. Harrison won in 2003 by 746 votes.
So why is this one more interesting this time around, you might ask??? Redistribution. This riding has gained areas from the former Kennebecasis riding. That’s right, Brenda Fowlie’s riding in 2003, where she won by only 19 votes. Travel around these rural areas and ask about Fowlie’s representation and people do not give glowing reviews. You’ll be sure to hear about the main road that was closed due to a washout from the sping, until just a week or so ago. It was a major inconvienience for most everyone in the area.
Oh and to add a bit more to the mix, this riding is also gaining parts of Liberal MLA Stuart Jamieson’s Saint John Fundy riding. Further, some of the territory lost in redistribution, was pretty solid Conservative support. This probably explains why Mr.Harrison has been hitting the rural areas campaigning so hard, even before the writ was dropped. How much of a difference will this make? To early to tell, but depending on who the Liberal’s come up with, (they seem to be taking their sweet time with a candidate) it could be a horse race. Putting this one down as a definite "one to watch"........stay tuned!
**Edit- Since I posted this last night, the Liberal's site has been updated, and they have indeed chosen a candidate for this riding. Linda Watson. It appears there are only 4 ridings without Liberal Candidates now.
