Manitoba Election May 22

I have not been following Manitoba politics for some time. I used to be actively involved in the NDP during the Schreyer regime and later but the party is now so far to the right that I can't be bothered. All the parties are just slightly different shades and defenders of capitalism; although I guess there is green capital, blue capital, and perhaps the NDP is pink capital! Green capital doesn't even have a seat yet.
As the article mentions what should have been a very progressive investment fund turned into a disaster. Even I thought of investing in it except it turned out I didn't have any surplus funds to invest!
Doer has been very careful and moderate for the most part. The Conservatives have a new leader and the Liberals are far back in the polls. It is quite possible that Doer will be able to muster enough votes to stay in power but it could be thatj there are enough people tired of the NDP that they will opt for the Conservatives once again. The NDP came reasonably close last election in my constitutency but this time I am not sure they will have as good a candidate. The Conservatives capture most rural seats except in the north and sometimes in the interlake area. Most NDP seats are in poorer and ethnic areas of Winnipeg and two are held in Brandon. It may be difficult for the NDP to hold the west end seat.

Gary Doer calls May 22 election in Manitoba
Last Updated: Saturday, April 21, 2007 | 8:21 PM CT
CBC News
Manitoba NDP Leader Gary Doer has formally dissolved his majority government and called an election for May 22, the Tuesday after the Victoria Day long weekend.

"We have shown that Manitoba has changed," Doer told cheering supporters at the Winnipeg Convention Centre. "We have changed because we have become a can-do province, and we will continue to be a can-do province."

Manitoba Premier Gary Doer attends a funding announcement by Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Winnipeg on Friday afternoon before announcing in the evening that Manitobans will go to the polls May 22.
(John Woods/Canadian Press) Doer, who has led the province since 1999, is seeking his third term as premier. The NDP holds 35 of 57 seats in the legislature, while the Conservatives have 18 seats and the Liberals have two.

Denis Rocan, a Conservative MLA until he was kicked out of the caucus this week, is now sitting as an Independent. There is also vacant seat, Kirkfield Park, which had been held by the Conservatives until Stuart Murray, the party's former leader, resigned.

While making the election call, Doer touted major developments his government has brought to the province, from colleges to downtown office buildings.

"The endangered species of the building crane has been returned to Manitoba with some of our development," he said.

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Doer's party won the 2003 election with almost half of the popular vote, the largest percentage since 1915. At the time, Doer campaigned hard on a health-care platform, and it is expected health will be a critical issue again in this election.

Critical about health care
The opposition parties have criticized the NDP for failing to provide enough beds in Manitoba hospitals. The NDP has argued throughout both of its mandates that the previous Conservative government was to blame for making cuts to health care that the party says created the problems in the first place.

Another hot issue in the election could be the government's role in the Crocus Investment Fund, which collapsed in 2005, resulting in a loss totalling millions of dollars for the 34,000 Manitobans who put money into the fund.

The election is expected to be a tight race between the Conservatives and the NDP, especially for crucial seats in the southern area of Winnipeg, such as Riel, St. Norbert and Seine River.

Those seats have been held by the Tories in the past, and party officials say they're much better organized this time around than they were three years ago.

Poll suggests close race
A Probe Research poll conducted in early March indicated the NDP and Conservatives are in a dead-heat race, although other recent polls suggest Doer is one of the most popular premiers in the country.

Winning a third term in Manitoba has proven elusive for other Manitoba premiers. Conservative Premier Gary Filmon and the NDP's Ed Schreyer both lost power after two terms.

This will be Hugh McFadyen's first election as leader of the Conservatives. The rookie MLA was first elected in December 2005, and took over the party leadership from Murray in April 2006.

"The economy has been growing across North America, and Manitoba has not been keeping up," said McFadyen, who argues that private-sector investment has lagged behind other provinces.

At the helm of the Liberal party is Jon Gerrard, the only Liberal in the legislature from 1999 to 2003, before he was joined by Liberal Kevin Lamoureux of Inkster.

Gerrard launched his campaign Friday evening in front of a hospital that has struggled to address a physician shortage.

"(The NDP) has not been able to fix the problems that existed under the Tories," Gerrard said.

Andrew Basham leads the Green party, which has never elected an MLA.

Both the Tories and the NDP say they expect to spend about $1 million on the campaign. The Liberals expect to spend a record amount of money for the provincial party: $400,000.

With files from the Canadian Press