Less than two years since the last election, federal candidates for the Pontiac riding made their way to a debate hosted by local radio station CHIP FM

All five announced candidates were invited and all but the Bloc Québécois candidate were in attendance. The BQ representative, Gabrielle Desjardins, was unable to attend due to a prior commitment. At the time of invitations, the PPC candidate had not been chosen

The debate, held chiefly in French, covered various local and federal issues and was intermixed with pre-submitted questions from CHIP FM’s listeners.

Only 30 members of the public were present due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Of the four on stage, NDP candidate and NDP Pontiac riding association president Denise Giroux was the only one returning to the campaign for a second shot at leading the Pontiac riding.

Newcomers Shaughn McArthur, of the Green Party, Michel Gauthier of Conservatives and Sophie Chatel of the Liberals vyed to make their first public impression on the citizens of the Pontiac.

The first audience question revolved around an apparent lack of democratic choice in the selection process for some of the partys’ representatives. Owner of Esprit Rafting, Jim Coffey asked, “what should be done in the future to allow more grassroots participation in the selection of a candidate and promote more engagement in our democratic process?”

Chatel was acclaimed one day after Pontiac Liberal MP Will Amos said he would not run in the next federal election.

“I think all citizens of the Pontiac should be able to participate in the democratic process,” she said. All requirements for my candidacy were met, I took all the necessary steps, she added.

Giroux used the opportunity to hammer at the Liberal’s choice to call an election amid the fourth wave of the pandemic. “People are worried after a tough 18 months, about their parents, their children and school safety. It’s hard to get people to think about elections when they gave the government a mandate less than two years ago,” she said.

She also noted that she ran unopposed but was chosen by party members in a vote.

As to why the Liberals chose to call an election now, Chatel echoed Liberal leader Justin Trudeau’s talking points: “We are currently facing a challenge we haven’t seen since the end of World War II,” she said. “Which party do you want to lead that fight?”

McArthur made a pitch for a significant failed promise from Trudeau’s first election. People are disaffected with our politics, he said. “They feel like in the way that our democracy has evolved, that a vote for their conscience and vote for the things that they want to vote for is thrown away.“ The Green Party is a strong proponent of proportional representation and that is why I chose to run for the party, he added.

On the economic front — something The Equity asked candidates about in this week’s question on page five — Giroux said that rural ridings like the MRC Pontiac could no longer depend on or expect large industries to return to the region. Small, “cottage industries” should be supported. In particular, small to medium-sized businesses (SMEs) working on sustainable solutions to year-long vs seasonal employment should be encouraged. She stressed that a one-size-fits-all solution is not the right approach and growing municipalities needed federal help in developing resources and infrastructure.

Gauthier agreed with Giroux but said things must start at the local level, with local elected officials. He also felt that the CRB was holding back people from returning to work. The CRB was most recently extended to October. The Conservatives are an economic party. We are spending too much. We must create wealth and once we do that, we can share it, he added.

McArthur responded by going on the attack: “The Conservatives like to call themselves the party of economists, but they are the economists of the 19th century, I would argue,” he said.

People’s potential is being held back by the neglect of these regions and so many rural regions. We need to build an “integrated rural economy” with a clear plan to move us forward, McArthur added.

“Maybe once upon a time, the conservatives were good finance managers,” Chatel said. The Conservatives are creating spending programs without laying out the costs. The middle class is essential; with a robust middle class, the economy grows and so does tax revenue, she added.

At the end of the debate, each candidate made their final pitch.

The House requires diversified representation, Gauthier said, “if you want somebody that will be very hard to silence, you can vote for me.”

“What we need now is fresh, new green leaders, real leaders who are unencumbered by the corporate lobbies.” McArthur said.

“I want to be in the house with the rest of the leaders to keep them honest. We cannot give the Trudeau government carte-blanche,” Giroux said.

“Canada is at a crossroads in history, we have to tackle climate change and we have to manage to recover from the biggest pandemic in the last century,” Chatel said.

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