Provincial election: Niagara Centre riding profile
Niagara Centre Riding
The riding covers 490 square kilometres, taking in the cities of Port Colborne, Thorold and Welland and an area of south St. Catharines, with a population of 109,070. As of May 26, there were 85,895 eligible voters in the riding.
Running in this Thursday’s election are Jeff Burch, NDP; Joe Crawford, None of the Above Direct Democracy Party; Joe Dias, Green Party of Ontario; April Jeffs, PC Party of Ontario; Benoit Mercier, Liberal Party of Ontario; Patrick Pietruszko, Libertarian; Dario SmagataBryan, The People Party; and Steven Soos, independent.
In the last election, NDP candidate Cindy Forster won the riding, beating PC candidate Frank Campion by nearly 8,400 votes. Forster had 21,326 votes, Campion 12,933, followed by the Liberals’ Mercier with 9,060, Green party’s Donna Cridland with 1,874 and Libertarian Andrea J. Murik with 460.
Candidate profiles (alphabetical order by surname)
Jeff Allan Burch,
New Democratic Party
Age: 49
Occupation: Executive director, Niagara Folk Arts Multicultural Centre, where I manage a multimillion-dollar budget and a staff of over 40.
Family: Wife Linda Vespoli and son Jackson, 10.
Previous political experience: St Catharines city councillor for Merritton from 2006 to 2014, including four years as budget chair. Previously an NDP candidate in 1995 and 2006.
Community work: Co-founder of A Better Niagara, an organization focused on grassroots political change. Poverty-reduction and improved health-care activist.
Top issue: Improving health care in Niagara Centre, including maintaining services at both the Welland and Port Colborne hospitals and additional mental health services with reduced wait times.
Why are you running: My father recently had a stroke that left him paralyzed due to a shortage of hospital beds. My mother is his primary caregiver now. I want to be a part of making life better for our aging parents and building a better future for my young son. I believe Andrea Horwath’s Change for the Better plan will do that.
Why should voters choose you: I have represented people of this riding previously as a politician and during this time I delivered results while being trusted with important roles. I have spent my life fighting for working people and the less fortunate and I will bring that fight to Queen’s Park.
Contact info: Phone: 905-7882323, email: jeff.burch@ontariondp.ca, website: jeffburch.ontariondp.ca, Facebook: facebook.com/BurchJeff, Twitter: @JeffBurch_
Joseph Franklin Crawford, None of the Above Direct Democracy Party
Age: 33
Occupation: Entertainer and radio talk show host
Family: Only child from a loving family
Previous political experience: None whatsoever, but a lot of people experience.
Community work: Knights of Columbus, organist and choir director, many performances to support charitable events.
Top issue: Long-term care, affordable housing, hospital care.
Why are you running: Sick and tired of the same lies and runabout from politicians. I’m here for the people to not only be heard, but to be seen and have action happening.
Why should voters choose you: For change and someone who will represent you by not all talk but action, too.
Contact info: 289-241-2128, website: www.joecrawfordlive.com, https://nota.ca/joe-crawford, email: Joeshowlivetv@gmail.com, Facebook: Www.facebook.com/joey7 April Jeffs
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
Age: 44
Occupation: Two-term mayor of Wainfleet and small business owner of April Jeffs Photo Studio
Family: Two sons, Gordy and Thomas
Previous political experience: Mayor of Wainfleet, Niagara Regional councillor
Community work: Board of directors Niagara Children’s Centre, secretary St. John Ambulance Welland, Welland Canal Working
Group, member of Catholic Women’s League, board member Therapy Tails Niagara, Big Brothers Big Sisters and Wainfleet softball coach
Top issue: Enhance healthcare services in Niagara Centre
Why are you running: Because for too long the voices of Niagara Centre have been neglected at Queen’s Park.
Why should voters choose you: My vision for Niagara Centre is to make life more affordable, reduce taxes, invest in health care/mental health and I have the experience to turn the vision into reality for Niagara Centre.
Contact Info: email: info@apriljeffs.com, Facebook: www.facebook.com/apriljeffs Benoit Mercier
Liberal Party of Ontario Age: 55 Occupation: Executive director of the French Catholic school boards association
Family: Wife Susan Turner, children Alexandre, Neil and Michelle
Previous political experience: Liberal candidate for the Welland riding in 2011 and 2014; 25 years’ experience in union politics at the local, provincial and national level
Community work: Past president of Welland Minor Baseball, past president of Club Richelieu, current board member of Club Richelieu, past vice-president of Caisse Populaire Welland Ltd., board member of Sacré-Coeur parish, umpire instructor for Baseball Ontario and Baseball Canada, former vice-president of Niagara District Baseball Association, former vice-president of Niagara Baseball Umpires Association.
Top issue: Quality health care, good middle-class paying jobs and a first-class education system
Why are you running: I am running because I believe in the people of Niagara Centre. I am running because we have not had a strong voice at Queen’s Park to advocate for good jobs and the economy in south Niagara. I am running because I live in the riding and know the residents because I have lived the challenges that we faced. I am running because I am an agent for positive change.
Why should voters choose you: Voters should vote for me because I have a proven track record of getting things done. In my teaching, union, management career in education, as well as the community organizations that I have been involved, I have been a visionary and have planned effective structural changes to each and every organization that I have led.
Contact info: 905-734-4242, https://bit.ly/2JrYkOy, Twitter: @Benoit_Mercier
Patrick Pietruszko Libertarian Party
Age: 29
Occupation: Business owner Family: Married with three toddlers
Previous political experience: None
Community work: Running this campaign
Top issue: Individual liberty and free markets
Why are you running: The four taxpayer-funded parties are fighting for their own self-interests and not for the people that they should be serving. I want a smaller government and more options in regard to education and health care.
Why should voters choose you: I will push to end health care rationing, de-fund state abortions, put parents back in charge of education, and reduce the size and scope of our government.
Contact info: https://bit.ly/2HmPvka
Dario Lawrence Steven Smagata-Bryan
The People Party
Age: 18
Occupation: Student (history at Brock University)
Family: Roots in Welland, from blue-collar family
Previous political experience: Sat in on federal cabinet and municipal council meetings, attendee of Forum for Young Canadians
Community work: member of Welland mayor’s youth advisory council, Brock Leaders Citizenship Society, Niagara Centre Youth Council, Ontario Students Against Impaired Driving, Niagara Falls soup kitchen volunteer
Top issue: Better treatment and support for mental health in our communities.
Why are you running: To provide a political voice for young people in Niagara and to ensure that the needs of average people are met in this election.
Why should voters choose you: I am in politics as a service, not a career. My goal is to represent the people in our community who may otherwise be ignored.
Contact info: dariosmagata@gmail.com, Dario Smagata-Bryan — MPP Candidate Niagara Centre on Facebook Steven Soos Independent Age: 23 Occupation: Child and youth worker; Previous: restaurant manager, bachelor of arts degree in international development and philosophy from Trent University (2016).
Family: Zachary Soos
Previous political experience: federal election candidate Niagara Falls riding (2015), Welland city council candidate Ward 6 (2014), radio talk show host True Politics (2015), City of Peterborough community investment grants advisory committee (201314).
Community work: Authored several motions presented to Niagara Region and Welland city council including for advocating for addictions/mental health, missing persons and their families, Welland hospital services, online voting, ward naming and against animal abuse.
Top issue: Youth retention — providing opportunities for our children and grandchildren so they can remain in Niagara region and contribute to economic, social and political growth.
Why are you running: I am running to be an independent voice for Niagara Centre. The party system is broken; they don’t care about you, they care about your vote.
Why should voters choose you: Voters should choose me because I am a familiar face in Niagara Centre. I was born and raised in Welland, I’ve lived here all my life. My family is deeply committed to public service in the area.
Contact info: Email: stevensoos2018@outlook.com, Twitter: @SoosNiagara
Green Party of Ontario candidate Joe Dias did not respond by deadline for the riding profile.