Jo-Dee Burbach didn’t win the Perth-Wellington riding for the NDP but the Stratford resident took some positives away from her first dive into a provincial election campaign.
“The goal was to reach out to the whole electorate and talk with them and engage to get our message across,” Burbach told StratfordToday. “It was a positive experience being able to connect to so many in the community.”
The geographical size of the riding made it a challenge to try and meet everyone, given the relatively short amount of time afforded candidates during the 2022 election campaign.
Burbach had the assistance of two full time staffers, including campaign manager Shannon Cruickshank and two part-time employees. Dozens of volunteers helped, too, she noted.
“We probably had 10 Generation Z youngsters working on my campaign – they were great and they brought a lot of energy.”
Burbach was proud to win the election “hands down” at Stratford Secondary School’s mock election.
Getting a chance to hear the issues and learn about the concerns around the riding stands out, as Burbach said she felt a real connection to the community. That will help her moving forward as she returns to representing Stratford residents as a city councillor, ending a leave of absence taken just before the provincial election campaign started.
“Being able to talk with so many people and have conversations with them will help me better serve people in Stratford.”
Burbach is unsure if she will run again provincially.
“I would entertain it but I am not making any commitments right now.”
Matthew Rae won the riding for the Progressive Conservatives with 46.8 per cent of the vote, well ahead of Burbach’s 22.1 per cent. Liberal Ashley Friest-Fox finished third with 16.1 per cent and Green Party candidate Laura Bisutti was fourth with 6.3 per cent.
“One always goes into it to win,” Burbach said of the results. “I think we did everything we could to connect with people. Some of the rural areas lean more towards the conservatives.”
The NDP remained the official opposition in Ontario but party leader Andrea Horwath announced her resignation after the results were announced. Burbach was not too surprised, noting the time and commitment it takes.
Burbach was disappointed with the overall low voter turnout in the province – 43.5 per cent, an all-time low for a provincial election and down from 57 per cent in 2018.
“You can’t blame the voters. The system doesn’t encourage people to get out and vote. We need to make changes and encourage people to engage. We can’t have a democratic process if people don’t participate.”
Burbach congratulated Rae on his win.
“He came out to the debates, a lot of his colleagues did not.”
The MPP also encouraged communication with his NDP counterpart and Burbach said she will continue dialogue with him moving forward.
