The standing at dissolution was: PC 34, Lib 12, NDP 2.
Projection of seats is: PC 46 Lib 0 NDP 2.
More information is available at nodice.
Showing posts with label Newfoundland Labrador election. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Newfoundland Labrador election. Show all posts
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Monday, September 17, 2007
Danny Williams in N.L. has 76 per cent support
There does not seem to be much of a race in this election. I imagine the Liberals could lose many of the eleven seats they hold. The NDP has just one seat.
Williams heads into N.L. campaign with commanding lead
'Long after the oil and gas is gone, we will have to depend on the fishery': Liberal leader
Last Updated: Monday, September 17, 2007 | 7:21 AM NT
CBC News
Newfoundland and Labrador politicians will hit the campaign trail in earnest Monday, as Premier Danny Williams asks for the house of assembly to be dissolved.
Premier Danny Williams will officially launch the PC campaign at a rally Monday evening in Corner Brook.
(CBC)
The Opposition Liberals, though, have already hit the ground running, with the release Sunday of a platform that asks voters to think beyond the short-term prosperity that oil wealth will bring.
Williams is to visit Government House in St. John's on Monday to ask Lt.-Gov. Ed Roberts to dissolve the legislature. Williams's first major campaign event will a suppertime launch at Corner Brook's Pepsi Centre.
The election will be held on Oct. 9, the first under fixed-date legislation passed in 2004.
Continue Article
Williams heads into the three-week campaign with a commanding lead in the polls and coming off a string of high-profile energy announcements, particularly a resolution to a long-running dispute over development of the Hebron oil megaproject.
A Corporate Research Associates poll released this month shows the Progressive Conservatives have 76 per cent support among decided voters.
Liberal leader Gerry Reid launched his campaign platform while arriving on a fishing vessel at St. John's harbour. He said the platform demonstrated the Liberals' commitment to rural communities.
Liberal leader Gerry Reid released a platform on Sunday that promises tax cuts, fee reductions and other measures.
(CBC)
"Very little has been done about the fishery," said Reid, citing plant closures and a strike he blamed on "poor government policy [that] just about brought the fishery to its knees."
Reid reminded voters that oil revenues will be finite.
"Long after the oil and gas is gone, we will have to depend on the fishery," Reid said.
The Liberals, who were thrown out of government in 2003, have a steep road ahead of them to hold back the PCs. Even as the campaign starts, the Liberals have to find candidates in 15 of the province's 48 districts.
"That's a possibility when you see where the premier is in the polls — there's obviously some people reconsidering whether or not they're going to run," Reid said.
"But we've had a couple of very decent candidates come forward over the last few days."
The Liberal platform includes elements that the party has already highlighted in a bid to attract middle- and working-class families, including lower taxes and reduced fees.
The Liberals also say they would create a prosperity fund to manage the province's offshore wealth. However, the platform does not say whether a Liberal government would seek an equity stake in future oil and gas projects.
Williams announced in August that his government has acquired a 4.9 per cent ownership stake in Hebron. Last week, Williams said the province has purchased a five per cent stake in pending expansion of the White Rose field.
A long-awaited energy blueprint announced last week says the province will seek a 10 per cent equity stake in all future oil and gas projects.
The Progressive Conservatives hold 34 seats in the Legislature, while the Liberals hold 11. The New Democrats hold one seat, while two seats are vacant.
Williams heads into N.L. campaign with commanding lead
'Long after the oil and gas is gone, we will have to depend on the fishery': Liberal leader
Last Updated: Monday, September 17, 2007 | 7:21 AM NT
CBC News
Newfoundland and Labrador politicians will hit the campaign trail in earnest Monday, as Premier Danny Williams asks for the house of assembly to be dissolved.
Premier Danny Williams will officially launch the PC campaign at a rally Monday evening in Corner Brook.
(CBC)
The Opposition Liberals, though, have already hit the ground running, with the release Sunday of a platform that asks voters to think beyond the short-term prosperity that oil wealth will bring.
Williams is to visit Government House in St. John's on Monday to ask Lt.-Gov. Ed Roberts to dissolve the legislature. Williams's first major campaign event will a suppertime launch at Corner Brook's Pepsi Centre.
The election will be held on Oct. 9, the first under fixed-date legislation passed in 2004.
Continue Article
Williams heads into the three-week campaign with a commanding lead in the polls and coming off a string of high-profile energy announcements, particularly a resolution to a long-running dispute over development of the Hebron oil megaproject.
A Corporate Research Associates poll released this month shows the Progressive Conservatives have 76 per cent support among decided voters.
Liberal leader Gerry Reid launched his campaign platform while arriving on a fishing vessel at St. John's harbour. He said the platform demonstrated the Liberals' commitment to rural communities.
Liberal leader Gerry Reid released a platform on Sunday that promises tax cuts, fee reductions and other measures.
(CBC)
"Very little has been done about the fishery," said Reid, citing plant closures and a strike he blamed on "poor government policy [that] just about brought the fishery to its knees."
Reid reminded voters that oil revenues will be finite.
"Long after the oil and gas is gone, we will have to depend on the fishery," Reid said.
The Liberals, who were thrown out of government in 2003, have a steep road ahead of them to hold back the PCs. Even as the campaign starts, the Liberals have to find candidates in 15 of the province's 48 districts.
"That's a possibility when you see where the premier is in the polls — there's obviously some people reconsidering whether or not they're going to run," Reid said.
"But we've had a couple of very decent candidates come forward over the last few days."
The Liberal platform includes elements that the party has already highlighted in a bid to attract middle- and working-class families, including lower taxes and reduced fees.
The Liberals also say they would create a prosperity fund to manage the province's offshore wealth. However, the platform does not say whether a Liberal government would seek an equity stake in future oil and gas projects.
Williams announced in August that his government has acquired a 4.9 per cent ownership stake in Hebron. Last week, Williams said the province has purchased a five per cent stake in pending expansion of the White Rose field.
A long-awaited energy blueprint announced last week says the province will seek a 10 per cent equity stake in all future oil and gas projects.
The Progressive Conservatives hold 34 seats in the Legislature, while the Liberals hold 11. The New Democrats hold one seat, while two seats are vacant.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
The Politics of Desperation: Newfoundland Labrador election
This is from a Newfoundland Labrador blogger. With the lopsided polls favoring the Conservatives it is not surprising there is not much news coverage of the election!
Strategic voting is usually used to elect a lesser evil and keep the greater evil out of power. It seems weird to use it just to guarantee an opposition!
The Politics of Desperation.
Newfoundland and Labrador will be heading to the polls in a provincial election early next month. Soon candidates will be hitting the election trail in full force. Over the next week or so campaign signs will begin to deface the landscape once again and election promises will start flying around faster than a hummingbird on steroids. For the most part the process will play itself out as these things always do, but there is one marked difference this time around.
With the latest opinion polls showing what appears to be a one horse race, and with the two mainstream provincial opposition parties struggling on life support, a new tactic has become all the rage with those who see their political futures slipping further away with each passing day.
The provincial PC party, or as they would prefer to be called, the “Danny Williams Team”, currently stands at about 75% - 80% support in the province and are expected to win by a landslide. Whether those numbers actually hold up going into the election remains to be seen but they have prompted some party faithful, those not on the “Danny Williams Team”, to an act of utter desperation.
Some are suggesting that the 80% of voters who currently support the PC party should consider using their vote strategically rather than casting it for the party of their choice.
It’s a new wrinkle in what appears to be an increasingly undemocratic society, a concept that’s being talked about a lot lately and one that speaks volumes about the desperation of those promoting the idea.
Essentially the proponents would like supporter of the reigning PC party to vote for a Liberal or NDP candidate instead. They say strategic voting will ensure a strong opposition, help hold the government to account and protect our democratic system.
Excuse me while I vent, but the entire concept is ludicrous. It reeks of fear and desperation. Cleary the idea is nothing more then a last ditch attempt by dying and unbalanced political hopefuls who hope to hang on by their well manicured fingernails.
There is no doubt that there’s something to be said for a strong opposition. As someone once said, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely”. In Newfoundland and Labrador those words ring far truer than in most places. Many voters are old enough to recall Joey Smallwood and the fallout of his unchallenged power, but the existence of a strong opposition is something that has to happen in a natural way, not through a forced agenda.
The onus for getting elected lies with the members of the various parties, not with the voters. It’s the parties that must present strong candidates and solid platforms. It is the candidates themselves who need to give voters sound reasons to trust them, to want them in office and to elect them. If they can't do that then they deserve to lose.
Instead of the parties stepping up to the challenge of providing a real alternative to the voting public, those voters are being asked to cast their ballots against their choice in the name of protecting democracy.
It’s a concept that is the complete antithesis of what democracy is all about and the proponents of this approach should hang their heads in shame.
By asking this of the public they are actually asking them to give away their ability to vote for their candidate or party of choice.
Why should I or anyone else vote for a candidate or a party I don’t support? What possible reason could I have to even consider such a thing? It’s almost too foolish to talk about. Consider what might happen if everyone suddenly had a massive attack of the stupids and actually acted on this. The end result might see the public elect a government nobody wanted. Now there's a cold reality check for you.
The very foundation of a democracy is the right of each individual to vote for the candidate of their choice. The system is not meant to be corrupted by having voters support a candidate or party they do not want to form government.
I have no way of knowing if my preferred candidate will win a seat this October or not, but win or lose, I'll execise my franchise in the way it was intended. I certainly don't intend to cast my vote for someone who is looking for a free pass instead of providing me with a solid choice that would warrant my support.
Strategic voting is usually used to elect a lesser evil and keep the greater evil out of power. It seems weird to use it just to guarantee an opposition!
The Politics of Desperation.
Newfoundland and Labrador will be heading to the polls in a provincial election early next month. Soon candidates will be hitting the election trail in full force. Over the next week or so campaign signs will begin to deface the landscape once again and election promises will start flying around faster than a hummingbird on steroids. For the most part the process will play itself out as these things always do, but there is one marked difference this time around.
With the latest opinion polls showing what appears to be a one horse race, and with the two mainstream provincial opposition parties struggling on life support, a new tactic has become all the rage with those who see their political futures slipping further away with each passing day.
The provincial PC party, or as they would prefer to be called, the “Danny Williams Team”, currently stands at about 75% - 80% support in the province and are expected to win by a landslide. Whether those numbers actually hold up going into the election remains to be seen but they have prompted some party faithful, those not on the “Danny Williams Team”, to an act of utter desperation.
Some are suggesting that the 80% of voters who currently support the PC party should consider using their vote strategically rather than casting it for the party of their choice.
It’s a new wrinkle in what appears to be an increasingly undemocratic society, a concept that’s being talked about a lot lately and one that speaks volumes about the desperation of those promoting the idea.
Essentially the proponents would like supporter of the reigning PC party to vote for a Liberal or NDP candidate instead. They say strategic voting will ensure a strong opposition, help hold the government to account and protect our democratic system.
Excuse me while I vent, but the entire concept is ludicrous. It reeks of fear and desperation. Cleary the idea is nothing more then a last ditch attempt by dying and unbalanced political hopefuls who hope to hang on by their well manicured fingernails.
There is no doubt that there’s something to be said for a strong opposition. As someone once said, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely”. In Newfoundland and Labrador those words ring far truer than in most places. Many voters are old enough to recall Joey Smallwood and the fallout of his unchallenged power, but the existence of a strong opposition is something that has to happen in a natural way, not through a forced agenda.
The onus for getting elected lies with the members of the various parties, not with the voters. It’s the parties that must present strong candidates and solid platforms. It is the candidates themselves who need to give voters sound reasons to trust them, to want them in office and to elect them. If they can't do that then they deserve to lose.
Instead of the parties stepping up to the challenge of providing a real alternative to the voting public, those voters are being asked to cast their ballots against their choice in the name of protecting democracy.
It’s a concept that is the complete antithesis of what democracy is all about and the proponents of this approach should hang their heads in shame.
By asking this of the public they are actually asking them to give away their ability to vote for their candidate or party of choice.
Why should I or anyone else vote for a candidate or a party I don’t support? What possible reason could I have to even consider such a thing? It’s almost too foolish to talk about. Consider what might happen if everyone suddenly had a massive attack of the stupids and actually acted on this. The end result might see the public elect a government nobody wanted. Now there's a cold reality check for you.
The very foundation of a democracy is the right of each individual to vote for the candidate of their choice. The system is not meant to be corrupted by having voters support a candidate or party they do not want to form government.
I have no way of knowing if my preferred candidate will win a seat this October or not, but win or lose, I'll execise my franchise in the way it was intended. I certainly don't intend to cast my vote for someone who is looking for a free pass instead of providing me with a solid choice that would warrant my support.
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