Candidate: Ken Boshcoff

Liberal candidate Ken Boshcoff says he can hit the ground running if elected as the Member of Parliament for Thunder Bay – Rainy River.

The former mayor and recently elected at-large city councillor is taking his sixth stab, including two failed bids as a Progressive Conservative candidate in the 1980s, at federal politics by running in the May election.

Boshcoff graduated Lakehead University, where he completed degrees in political science and economics. In 1975, he received his master’s degree of environmental studies in systems planning from York University.

He served as a city councillor for 16 years and as mayor for two terms from 1997 to 2003. Boshcoff then went into federal politics and won the Thunder Bay – Rainy River riding in 2004 and again in 2006 where he became the official opposition critic for FedNor.

The 61-year-old said his experience as a mayor, councillor and MP gives him a competitive edge over the other candidates running to represent the riding.

"I already know that I can start the job at a run," he said. "Being the past president of the Municipal Association and mayor, all those experiences combined, plus my business career and all the community things I do means not many other candidates have that combination of skills ready to go."

The northwest has great economic opportunities, such as mining, and with the right person at the helm, Thunder Bay and other northern communities could achieve a break through economically, he said.

Boshcoff wants to focus his campaign on Northwestern Ontario’s economic opportunities and wants to look more into mining development and research innovations.

"What an MP can really do is he can be your catalyst," he said. "He can be the go to person who can pull people together. That’s my skill in terms of bringing people together. I know business, I know government but I also know communities."

Boshcoff described an MP as someone who could engage the community and businesses, someone that could be part of a team made up of community members as well as government officials.

He said he has the skills to build those relationships.

But health care and education remains a top priority as well as jobs and education. He said those priorities will ensure that Thunder Bay and other northern communities will have a prosperous future.

"I’m out in the public constantly," he said. "(Those three issues) are what the public tells me. As someone who has worked in business development, I can really see where the gaps are and what needs to be done and I know how to do it."