Municipal councillor to run for NDP
After nearly eight years on municipal council, Brock McGregor is eyeing a seat in the provincial legislature.
The Chatham councillor announced he’ll run for the NDP in the Chatham-Kent–Leamington riding in the June election.
It was a matter of being asked enough times that McGregor finally said yes.
“The local riding association had contacted me a few times about the opportunity,” he said. “It felt like the right time to step in and represent a party I think has a really good plan to improve lives in Chatham-Kent–Leamington.”
Issues the party supports that captured McGregor’s attention include affordable housing, health care and long-term care.
“Housing affordability is something we’ve seen really impact our community in the past few years. If we are going to see our community continue to grow, we have to address affordability issues.”
Home prices and rental rates continue to spiral upward in Chatham-Kent.
“The NDP positions well to lead us into the future,” McGregor said.
The last time the NDP won in this region was in 1990. Randy Hope rode the Bob Rae wave into office 32 years ago, holding the seat until 1995.
Despite that fact, McGregor said he thinks it is the “right time to step in, with the political climate in Ontario and with the messaging we see and the conversations we’ve had. Through COVID, with good health care and investments in public health, it’s really important to see change. It’s been demonstrated how deeply provincial politics affect our everyday lives.”
Once the campaign period begins in early May, McGregor said he’ll take a leave of absence from serving as a municipal councillor to focus on the provincial campaign.
He declined to say if he’d run again for municipal council should he fail to be elected provincially in June. In fact, McGregor said he’s not looking at the 2022 municipal election, slated for the fall, or the fact he could be campaigning twice in one year if the provincial bid falls short.
“The plan right now is to focus on this provincial election. For now, I’ll continue with my council responsibilities,” he said. “And during the election period, I will take a leave and not attend those council meetings after the writ is dropped. There is still lots of (municipal) work to be done and some things I am hoping to see through.”
The local NDP riding association is holding a nomination meeting April 5, but McGregor said he will be acclaimed.
