A candidate vying for the leadership position of Ontario's PC Party is drumming up support in Windsor-Essex.
Christine Elliott, a former MPP and most recently the province's patient ombudsman, stopped for an informal townhall-style meet-and-greet Thursday night at Colasanti's in Kingsville.
Before a crowd of residents and high school-age volunteers clad in blue shirts, Elliott gave a summary of her platform. She then took several questions from the audience, ranging from the timing of the leadership campaign to the employment situation in Windsor-Essex.
Windsor-Essex has traditionally been a region that's voted for Liberal and NDP representation at both Parliament Hill and Queen's Park. Essex has not had a Tory MPP since Bill Murdoch lost to Liberal Donald Paterson in 1963. Elliott says she's pleased to see the organisation behind potential PC candidates in Essex, and she is confident Windsor-Essex can help defeat the majority Liberals in the June election.
"I'm hearing from people across the province that they are tired of the Wynne Liberals, that they want change, and we are the party to produce that change and bring sensible government back to Ontario," says Elliott.
One question raised by the gathering in Kingsville concerned hydro prices. Some Windsor-Essex residents say have seen their electricity bills skyrocket. Elliott says she is fully aware of the problem as it affects people in Essex County.
"The energy issue is huge," says Elliott. "We've had a series of disastrous decisions being made, which have tripled people's power bills since [the Liberals] took power in 2003. They just can't continue this way. It is not sustainable."
Elliott is one of four candidates left running in the leadership race following the departure of Patrick Brown. She is currently running against Toronto City Councillor Doug Ford, businesswoman Caroline Mulroney and conservative activist Tanya Granic Allen.
Mulroney will be in Windsor Saturday from 8am to 9am at the Ciociaro Club.
Ontario PC Party members begin voting for their new leader this week. The winner will be unveiled Saturday, March 10 at the Tory leadership convention in Toronto.