(Gananoque, ON April 16, 2025) Election Day is on April 28 and in these highly volatile times everyone’s vote counts more than it ever did before. This year in Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, five candidates are running for MP. There can only be one winner, and people are trying to make their best choice, the one that will best serve all of Canada and not just their local region.

“This is not going to be an easy election,” said Dennis O’Connor of the O’Connor Gallery in Gananoque. “People need to get away from their old ideas of only voting for a friend or someone they think will best serve their own personal riding. We need to start thinking of the entire country who will best lead and where we’re going to end up in the end.”

The five candidates running in this riding are Lorna Jean Edmonds (Liberal Party), Paul Lancione (NDP), Randi Ramdeen (Green Party), Hailey Simpson (People’s Party of Canada) and incumbent Michael Barrett (Conservative). Each party has its own agenda and plan for the future of Canada, and each candidate also speaks to their people as to their plans to represent their specific area in addition to what the federal the government has in mind. Each candidate also has a personal election website which may be referenced to get an idea of how they feel about the issues, how they plan to lead and what their next steps are going to be.

“Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes is the crown jewel of eastern Ontario and the Mecca of possibilities,” said Edmonds on her site at www.lj4u.ca/vision . “It takes leadership to protect, to build and mobilize resources for change. Let’s lead together!”

She goes on to emphasize the need for leadership to have experience and connections to strengthen Canada. The party under the leadership of Mark Carney (liberal.ca/meet-mark-carney/)  has plans to improve infrastructure, energy, health and well-being, defense and to build up the population base. They wish to see a united Canada which is productive and enjoys economic prosperity with the proper social safety net. She presents a detailed list of the areas she feels are most important and states that “(she) will uphold the rights and self-determination of all of you, including women, disabled people, indigenous peoples and the 2 S LGBTQ + community as proclaimed in our laws and constitution now and into the future.”

Paul Lancione’s site (paullancione.ndp.ca/) describes him as “a young professional progressive fighting against the threats of far-right extremism and American expansionism in this country. Paul received an honours Bachelor of Arts with high distinction from the University of Toronto in 2022, and he now works in the financial services industry. He aims to be a voice for vulnerable people in his community and across Canada.”

Lancione promises to uphold the beliefs of representatives Jagmeet Singh (www.ndp.ca/jagmeet) and his goals to make the country stronger, healthier, and to tax the rich in a way that they feel is more representative than the system in place at this time.

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The Green Party’s Randi Randeem (www.greenparty.ca/en/candidate/randi-ramdeen) “believes in common sense solutions that balance economic prosperity with sustainability. She is committed to strengthening rural economies, supporting small businesses, and ensuring families have access to good jobs, affordable housing, and quality health care period she knows that investing in local industries, infrastructure, and sustainable innovation is key to long term success.”

The party leader, Elizabeth May (www.greenparty.ca/en/candidate/elizabeth-may), supports an environmentally friendly platform which emphasizes not only the environment but all of the things necessary to improve quality of life for working families in Canada.

 Hailey Simpson (www.peoplespartyofcanada.ca/candidate/hailey-simpson ) represents the People’s Party of Canada led by Maxime Bernier (www.peoplespartyofcanada.ca/about#about-our-party) . Bernier left the Conservative Party in 2018 to become an independent member of parliament and then launched the People’s Party of Canada a few weeks later.

Simpson strongly supports the ideals of her party and “believes bold leadership is needed to reverse the harmful effects of progressive policies, and the government outreach, and restore Canada’s economic and social prosperity. She is committed to reducing government size, ending mass immigration and foreign aid, protecting free speech, and eliminating divisive identity politics. (She) envisions a future where Canadians are free, united, and able to thrive.”

Incumbent Michael Barrett, MP for Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, is hoping to take the election for 2025. He continues to support party leader Pierre Poilievre (www.conservative.ca/pierre-poilievre/) and his goals.

Poilievre is best known for his past record as a career politician. He has served the conservative party through several prime ministers and re-elections and hopes to continue on to become Prime Minister. He is a graduate of the University of Calgary with a degree in International Relations.

The O’Connor Gallery held a meet-and-greet for Edmonds on April 16. An all-candidates event was being held later that evening in Brockville.

“This evening, we welcomed nearly 100 supporters to meet the candidate,” said O’Connor. “This election is about more than party – it is also about our sovereignty and who can protect that the best. Canadians have never been more united than they are now. Arts and culture form the identity of any great nation, and I was impressed by this candidate’s views on this topic. Investment and encouragement in cultural activities is vital – they are the backbone of many economies in towns and cities throughout Canada. To focus on the arts is one of the many things that separate us from the U.S. I am honoured to have hosted Lorna Jean Edmonds and her commitment to Canadian culture.

“However, I encourage everyone to vote for the party that they feel best represents and supports all of Canada at this time. There is a lot going on in the world now that is destructive and shameful – human rights violations being a major part of that. We need to decide whether we want to remain strong and free or meekly follow the crowd.”