11 Responses for "SUDBURY"

1. Marcel Belanger September 14th, 2008 at 4:11 pm 1

   Diane Marleau does absolutely nothing for this riding. You don’t hear anything from her and then come election time she is all over the place. I’ve voted for Ms. Marleau in the past but it’s time for a change.

2. "Average" Joey DeMarco September 15th, 2008 at 3:59 am 2

   There are 5 reasons the projection for Sudbury should be moved to a ? immediately.

   1) Marleau’s 20 year incumbancy is not an asset any longer. She is seen as tired, uncaring, and even lazy by many voters who have heard and seen almost no action from her over the past two minority governments.

   2) There are many (unsubstantiated I’ll admit) reports that Liberal insiders have withdrawn or are withholding support from the Marleau campaign. The belief among many observers is that the Bartolucci liberals (by far the stronger group in town) have grown impatient with Diane and wanted her to step aside so that they could nominate their chosen Candidate-In-Waiting. Withholding support may be a kind of Liberal regicide.

   3) Conservative candidate Gerry Labelle is well known and has been on the ground for over a year campaigning. With Harper’s star on the rise, Labelle will certain;y pull tired liberals away from Marleau.

   4) The whole region is in doubt as New Democrats are coming on strong in Nickel Belt, and Algoma Manitoulin Kapuskasing. Dion has his hands full holding on to too many ridings to count, while Harper has little hope of making inroads. Layton will probably be looking to gain here and you can expect a high profile visit.

   5) Most importantly, the NDP have nominated a very credible candidate in Glenn Thibeault, currently on leave as the Executive Director of Sudbury United Way. His leadership in the community has opened a whole new area of support among socially conscious small-l liberals who want some action on issues they care about.

3. Former Sudburian September 22nd, 2008 at 2:21 pm 3

   Diane Marleau may not be doing much these days, but there’s very little chance for an upset. The Conservatives are a non factor here, especially since the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation was denied FedNor funding so that the feds could money to southern Ontario ridings with auto plants. Since Tories won’t win in Sudbury I guess they figured it’s better to spread their largesse on ridings where they might have luck. I could see a scenario where the Tory vote would actually decline slightly even as the national vote increases. If former city councillor Gerry McIntaggart ran again he might come closer, but Thibault has less name recognition. This is a safe Liberal seat. Hopefully Marleau will step aside soon.

4. Jonny September 22nd, 2008 at 3:35 pm 4

   Very few private lawn signs out so far. From what I can see the NDP and Liberals are running about even.

5. Christopher J. Duncanson-Hales October 2nd, 2008 at 1:32 pm 5

   I’m new to the Riding, and a NDP supporter. I’m not sure what to think about the Liberal campaign here. The campaign office is not open regularly, and the NDP lawn signs are definitely out numbering the liberals by 2 to 1 (I’m being conservative, it might be closer to 3 to 1). At the all candidates meeting at city hall, the liberal supporters were noticeably absent. Either the previous post about the ‘liberal boycott’ is accurate, or, the liberals are holding back for a final push after the debates. . .who knows. . .but it makes for an interesting riding. . .

6. Jonny October 3rd, 2008 at 6:04 pm 6

   Marleau tanked at the all-candidates debate. Thibeault came out on top hands down.

7. "Average" Joey DeMarco October 7th, 2008 at 4:36 am 7

   QUESTIONABLE TERRITORY for DIANE MARLEAU! I see the polls are finally showing what has been clear from the start of this race. Of course, it’s not a shoe-in for the New Democrat either, with the role of the Greens and Conservatives still very much in the air. Either way, the only direction that Marleau’s vote is headed is down, and NDP will gain significant vote share.

   I hear that Jack Layton will be in town Thursday for a real tour stop with a downtown rally, which may sow it up for Thibeault and the NDP.

8. Former Sudburian October 7th, 2008 at 11:10 am 8

   Recent polling has the Liberals returning to levels of support in Ontario they enjoyed in the last election and the NDP doing slightly better. But I still give this one to Marleau. The NDP have claimed they were close before, but were still well back. They may further close the gap, but Marleau will hang on.

9. "Average" Joey DeMarco October 10th, 2008 at 8:00 pm 9

   Last post from me on this, from the Globe and Mail itself:
   “…even veteran Liberal MPs such as Diane Marleau, the former Chrétien-era cabinet minister who has spent two decades in the House of Commons, is said to be working hard to keep her seat.”

   and

   “A survey conducted this week for The Globe and Mail and CTV by the Strategic Counsel found that in Northern Ontario, 41 per cent of respondents supported the NDP, 27 per cent backed the Conservatives, 23 per cent said they would vote Liberal and 9 per cent backed the Greens.”

10. King of Kensington October 12th, 2008 at 6:31 pm 10

    I’ll say this stays Liberal though the NDP should do very respectably and could pull an upset.

11. Christopher J. Duncanson-Hales October 22nd, 2008 at 9:14 am 11

    You could really sense that the liberals were just not coming out. The signs, the debates, e-day scrutineers. Not knowing the history of the riding I could really sense an upset, but, didn’t want to jinx it. I was also wary of a last minute Liberal push. The only real sign of that was commercials aired on CBC in the dying days of the campaign. I suspect that fundraising and money are major factors in this upset. A liberal activist interviewed on CBC noted that less then 5% of liberal members give regularly to the party. With the new financing rules, the liberals can’t rely on major donations from individuals or corporations. In the end, this might do more damage to the liberals then any apparent split on the left. . .