NDP Candidate Tanille Johnson visits Cortes Island

Roy L Hales/Cortes Island - NDP candidate Tanille Johnson recently visited Cortes Island, where 20 people were waiting to see her in the Pioneer Room at Mansons Hall. The event was sponsored by Cortes Island’s Climate Action Network, which also provided lunch. 

Johnson said she prefers small meetings like this,  “I've been spending most of my time going to people's houses, meeting with their friends,  I like to think that I'm a very truthful, honest person and I actually care about what happens in this riding. It means a lot to me, like my family, generations and generations, lived here.”

Recent polls suggest the Conservative Party may have lost its early lead in this pre-election period. Both EKOS (February 26) and Ipsos (February 25) released polls that show the Liberals edging forward in what has once again become a two party race. The NDP are a distant third and fading. 

That’s on the national level, it has always been a very different race in North Island-Powell River. If you include the results from the former Vancouver Island North riding, the choice has been NDP or Conservative for decades. Rachel Blaney has been our MP since 2015, but her predecessor John Duncan was a Conservative and the Conservatives have been a close second in every recent federal election. 

Now Blaney is stepping down. 338Canada’s most recent projections still depict Johnson as the underdog in our riding, but those projections will only be released on Sundays until the election is declared. A great deal has changed since last Sunday. More will change in the weeks to come. 

Tanille Johnson began,  “ I was born and raised in Campbell River,  that's my home territory and my home community in more ways than one.  I am a member of the We Wai Kai First Nation, one of the three Liǧʷiłdax̌ʷ Nations that make up the greater Campbell River area and a little bit up into Sayward for our traditional territory.  I didn't grow up on reserve. I spent a ton of time on reserve, but my house was down in Willow Point in Campbell River, which started me off in an interesting place in my life.” 

“I purposely moved back from Victoria eight years ago because I wanted to be home. I wanted to be home for me and for my kids.  I did not want to raise a family outside of my traditional territory. I'm extremely connected and loyal to this area. I'm not going anywhere.  I recognize that Ottawa is very far away and  I will be in Ottawa when I have to be in Ottawa but I will have big accountability for showing up in the riding and having my ear to the ground and showing up when you need me and being where I need to be.” 
“I first got into politics in post secondary education.  I dove in with both feet.  I was on the Native Student Union Council, I was on the UVic Student Society Board of Directors, I was on the UVic Senate. I sat at the Equity Advisory Council for the School of Social Work, federally with the Canadian Federation of Students on their Federal Executive Board as well as their Provincial Executive Board.”