THUNDER BAY - Yuk-Sem Won will once again be carrying the NDP banner during the next federal election in the Thunder Bay-Rainy River riding.
Won was confirmed as the candidate during an uncontested riding association vote on Monday.
“I think after the last election in 2019, I knew it was a really important role and I wanted to be a part of the advocacy for the region,” Won said.
“Going from the last campaign, it was really evident that we needed a good representative. The election turned out really close last time and right after, I knew I wanted to continue to bring forward not only the NDP, but ensure the current government was able to address the issues across Canada.”
Won first put her name forward to run for the NDP in 2019 when she earned the nomination over Jason Storkson.
During the 2019 federal election, Won received 11,944 votes, coming in third behind Conservative Party candidate Lynda Rydholm, who received 12,039 votes and Liberal MP Marcus Powlowski who won the riding with 14,498 votes or 35.3 per cent of the vote.
“I knew right from after the last election that I wanted to put my name forward and hopefully the riding association could have me,” Won said.
“Now it’s confirmed and I am going to be able to continue to advocate for the people of Thunder Bay – Rainy River through the NDP lens and really be able to bring forward some of the issues prior to the election and the election when it’s called and hopefully after.”
Won said she will continue to advocate for the people of Northwestern Ontario on issues like boil water advisories, action on climate change, and health care needs.
“During the pandemic, we really saw the cracks in inequities across Canada,” she said. “Those are things I think now, instead of just returning to a normal time as we recover form the pandemic, we need to come back better.”
“What is going to be important is really ensuring we don’t have a government that’s about big business and their well-connected friends, that it’s about the everyday people.”
The next federal election is slated for 2023 but with a minority government, an election could be called at any time.
Won said NDP leader Jagmeet Singh will not trigger an election during the pandemic because that is not something Canadians want.
“It’s not about control and power for the NDP,” she said. “It’s about advocating for what Canadians want. If an election is called during the pandemic I think it will be more about power and control and gaining a majority government instead of being about helping Canadians.”
But Won said she is ready no matter when an election will be called and the campaign trail will be different compared to the last election.
“One of the big changes is we are still going to be at the tail end, hopefully not in a pandemic. That means there’s going to be changes in how you campaign and how you do the outreach,” she said.
“In my last campaign, it was all about going and meeting constituents where they are and making sure we got the message out. We are very much about that face to face and talking to people. That is going to have to change and it’s going to be a very different landscape for the campaign trail. But I think our message for the NDP and our focus hasn’t changed.”
