Ken Melamed wants the voters in West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country to oust the incumbent Conservative MP.
But he doesn’t want them to do it strategically.
Instead, he wants people to put a check mark in the box beside his name as the Green Party candidate because he, and his party, are most closely aligned with their aspirations and values.
“What we’re hearing is that everyone has a lot of anger directed at [Prime Minister] Stephen Harper,” he said in a telephone interview as his ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Langdale passed Bowen Island. “[The Conservatives] are down to their base level of support.”
The Green Party’s popularity, on the other hand, has increased by 10 per cent in the polls, the former Whistler mayor says.
“It’s going to be a close four-way race but people have options. We’re seeing real strength across the parties. We will replace the Conservative incumbent…. People can vote their values and take back the country.”
One of those values is opposition to the Woodfibre LNG proposal in Squamish.
“I’ve been to nearly every public session, read all about it, and what I’m hearing is that people don’t want it,” he said. “They’d rather have economic security come from cleaner jobs that won’t compromise the environment of the Howe Sound.”
The Green Party doesn’t make decisions on a one-off basis, he said; instead, it has an environmental policy that tackles the broader environmental issue that needs immediate action: climate change.
“It doesn’t make sense to commit us to a fossil fuel economy,” he said.
His record as a politician in Whistler — he served five municipal terms, including two terms as mayor — illustrates his ability to be innovative and get things done, he said.
“Let’s focus on what works rather than get stuck in ideological battles.”
As Whistler mayor, he was a “tough negotiator” with the Vancouver Olympic Committee and helped bring the Whistler facilities in under budget and on time.
His website says the former stone mason helped steward Whistler’s Integrated Community Sustainability Plan Whistler2020, Whistler’s Long Term Financial Plan, First Nations’ Legacy Land Agreement and a successful resident housing program through the Whistler Housing Authority.
He also sat on the boards of Smart Growth BC, the Fraser Basin Council, Tourism Whistler, the Whistler Housing Authority and the Whistler Chamber of Commerce.
The jump from municipal to federal politics was not done lightly. After a period of reflection on the things that were important to him — building stronger communities and a better world for his children — he felt more needed to be done.
Municipal politicians’ desires to make positive changes were often undermined by the level of support from other levels of government, he says. Tired of the financial burden of downloaded services, he wanted to be a voice calling for more direct transfers and revenues.
“We can’t put our heads into the sand.”
He attended the Green Party’s convention in Fredericton and discovered “It’s the party that most aligns with my views.”
One of those views is that the autocratic, top-down style of the other parties — where MPs are servants of the party – doesn’t serve democracy well.
“The Green Party puts people before the party. I’m the only candidate that’s not going to be told how to vote when it comes to Woodfibre LNG” and, on that, “I’m committed to taking action to do whatever we can to stop the project.”
