Democracy is a wonderful thing, and in the current federal election that democracy is often highlighted by blue or red or orange or green election signs.
The people who volunteer in our campaign and others to erect these signs and keep them tidy are hard working and believe in their chosen candidate and party.
Unfortunately, the hard work of our sign crews has been blighted by repeated vandalism and destruction of our signs, to the point where one was replaced three times in a single day. Most frustratingly we often see our signs torn down and broken while pristine Liberal or NDP signs are just a few feet away.
We have filed three reports with the North Vancouver RCMP.
We also ask the public to be vigilant and if you see someone destroying an election sign, be it Conservative or Liberal or NDP or Green, please call the RCMP.
As a Liberal Party worker found out in Ontario this week breaking the law by stealing Conservative party signs is no way to run an election campaign. He was charged with theft by the RCMP and will be in court after the election.
Spirits run high in election campaigns, but vandalism remains a crime and has no place in our society--period.
Yours truly,
Ramona Materi President North Vancouver Conservative Association
Vancouver Sun April 14
Liberals and Conservatives battle for North Vancouver
By Tracy Sherlock, Vancouver Sun April 14, 2011
(Conservative MP Andrew Saxton (left) and supporters greet commuters merging onto the Second Narrows bridge on April 8.)
Conservative MP Andrew Saxton beat Liberal incumbent Don Bell by just 2,820 votes in the last election, but new Liberal candidate Taleeb Noormohamed thinks he can overcome that difference this time around.
It looks like it will be a two-way race between the Liberals and the Conservatives in North Vancouver, a riding that has swung between the former Alliance, the Liberals and the Conservatives in the past decade.
North Vancouver is made up of villages like Deep Cove, Lynn Valley and Lower Lonsdale, all set between the mountains and the sea. It's an affluent community, with a median family income of $80,185 compared to the provincial average median family income of $65,787.
Saxton told The Sun that the economy and jobs are the most important issues facing North Vancouver this time around, while Noormohamed said social issues for seniors and young families are paramount.
In 2008, Saxton won the seat with 42.3 per cent of the vote, while Bell had 37.4 per cent. The Greens' Jim Stephenson was third with 10.7 per cent and the NDP's Michael Charrois had 9.4 per cent.
This time around, after failing to secure the Liberal nomination, Stephenson is backing Noormohamed, and new candidate Greg Dowman is representing the Green party.
The community of 122,000 is represented by three provincial Liberal MLAs: Naomi Yamamoto, Jane Thornthwaite and Ralph Sultan.
Saxton, 47, said the issue he hears about most often when knocking on doors in the riding is the economy -specifically sustaining jobs and protecting the recovery from the recession.
"It's very important to families to ensure the breadwinner is employed," Saxton said. "Our economic plan has created a half a million jobs since July 2009. "Other countries are looking to us as a role model as to how to recover from a recession. We have the lowest debt to GDP ratio in the G7 and the highest growth.
Andrew participated in a debate this morning with his fellow candidates on the CBC's Early Edition program. If you are interested in hearing it, please follow the link below to listen.
Week two has come and gone and Team Saxton has had another busy week!
Our volunteer groups have found their legs and are quickly becoming professional burmashavers, door knockers and phone bankers. We are constantly attracting new volunteers and this is a great sign. If you would like to be involved with the campaign but only have a little amount of time to commit to it, please consider volunteering on E-day May 2. This will be the day that we will need the maximum number of volunteers to help out. As always if you are interested in volunteering please contact us at
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.
Andrew was busy attending a variety of events this week, including the North Vancouver Chamber of Commerce Small Business Trade Show, and the Great Capilano Duck Splash on Sunday as well as several meet and greets at various residences in North Vancouver.
In other news, there appears to be a new fad sweeping North Vancouver that some of you may have seen, and that is having a Re-Elect Andrew Saxton lawn sign in your front yard. Our lawn signs are literally flying out of our campaign office faster than the opposition are plummeting in the polls! Please don't hesitate to give our campaign office a call at 604-986-5515 if you would be interested in obtaining a lawn sign. Our office has even been receiving calls from constituents who have been kind enough to offer our sign crew the opportunity to construct 4X4 signs on their front lawn! This makes our lawn sign crew extremely happy as nothing gets these guys more excited than the opportunity to construct Andrew Saxton signs on private property! Let's give them more work!
Andrew has been actively knocking doors in many neighbourhoods around North Vancouver this week listening to people's recommendations and concerns. We have met many constituents who have been life long Liberal or NDP voters who are now planning on voting Conservative simply because they no longer want to support a party that is willing to force an unecessary and reckless election for the sole purpose of gaining power. Especially during a period where we need to focus on remaining fiscally responsible and continuing to protect our fragile economic recovery.
We were lucky this week to be visited by Senator Yonah Martin. She helped organize a group of her friends to come out and help our phone bankers make calls to constituents. She also went out and did some door knocking with some of our volunteers. She even personally delivered some Andrew Saxton lawn signs for us!
All in all, another great week. Great job this week team! Lets keep it up!
Rory McTory
Week 1 Campaign Update
What a busy week it has been! One week down and it has been full of activity! Our Campaign office is now completely open, equipped, and staffed. Our volunteer base is growing by the day, and we are surrounded by passionate, enthusiastic, and dedicated volunteers who are firmly supporting the re-election of Andrew Saxton. Talk about a great work environment!
Many of you have seen our signs out all over North Vancouver. Our fantastic sign crew has been working hard to make sure that these signs stay upright, and free of vandalism. Please let our campaign office know if you would be willing to take a lawn sign to display in front of your home.
On Tuesday evening, our campaign office hosted our first volunteer meeting. This event was a great success, with a large turnout of around 60 willing and enthusiastic volunteers. We were able to get great numbers for many campaign roles like burmashaving (the proper term for “sign waving”), door knocking, phone banking and data entry.
Thursday was a particularly exciting day. We were fortunate enough to host Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney. Andrew spent the greater part of the day Mainstreeting up and down Lonsdale with the Minister, visiting with local business owners, and constituents on a beautiful sunny afternoon. The Minister even noted that he wanted to know what we were putting in the water here in North Vancouver, as he was impressed by just how happy everyone he encountered was. We really do live in the happiest place in the world!
Later Thursday evening, Andrew was joined by Minister Kenney, Senator Yonah Martin, and 150 other supporters for the official opening of the Campaign office. What a great night, we had a bagpiper, a beautiful cake, and refreshments for all in attendance. See our Flikr account for photos of mainstreeting and our campaign office opening.
Bright and early on Friday morning, we had 16 volunteers burmashaving at the North end of the Second Narrows Bridge. A little Tim Horton’s fired into each of us, and we could hardly notice the freezing temperature and the misty wake of the frequent semi trailers ripping by us. Later that evening, Andrew attended the North Shore Harvest Project’s benefit concert at Centennial Theatre. It was a great turnout for a great cause.
Saturday, Andrew spent a good portion of the morning at Lynn Valley shopping centre where he met with many constituents and listened to many of their concerns and recommendations. Later in the afternoon, we spent time door knocking in neighbourhoods around Lonsdale. We received lots of positive feedback, convinced a few on the fence voters to vote Conservative, and had a ton of fun while doing it! Later in the evening Andrew visited the Rotary Club Spring Fling, and met with many Rotary members.
On Sunday, we spent a deal of time at the Campaign Office to discuss strategy. Afterwards we attended the Persian Sizdah Bedar festival at Ambleside. Great event, hundreds of people in attendance, and Andrew’s address to the crowd (in Farsi I might add) was very well received!
All in all, a very productive week for Team Saxton! Stay tuned for next week’s update.
Rory McTory (campaign blogger)
Saxton Re-Election Campaign Kick Off
The re-election of our hard working Member of Parliament, Andrew Saxton, is well underway and Andrew wants to invite you to join him and Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, to Andrew's official campaign kick-off and office opening this Thursday, March 31st in North Vancouver. Please see all the details below:
Time: 6:30 pm, March 31, 2011 Place: Saxton Campaign Head Quarters 161 East 1st Avenue, North Vancouver (1 block East of Lonsdale) Refreshments will be served
Please bring your friends and family to hear from Andrew and Minister Jason Kenny as the Conservative Party Federal election campaign gets off to a great start in North Vancouver. There will be refreshments for you and the young ones in your family.
Andrew's campaign team has already got a head-start with signs popping up everywhere in North Vancouver and Andrew is already hard at work in his campaign knocking on doors in North Vancouver neighborhoods.
Our team would love to hear from you and get you involved with this very important election in Canada. This election will decide whether Canada moves forward with the next phase of Canada's Economic Action Plan and whether the Conservative government's steady hand continues to guide Canada through these uncertain economic times globally.
Canada's economy has recovered all of the jobs lost in the global recession and our deficit and debt are lower than any of the G7 countries. The Conservative government's plan is working and is only being stopped by an unnecessary and opportunistic election forced on us by Ignatieff's Liberals and his coalition friends in the NDP and Bloc Quebecois.
Michael Ignatieff has a high tax agenda that will kill jobs, stall the recovery, and set families back. Incredibility, Ignatieff's new big idea is to spend your tax dollars on a new NHL hockey arena in Quebec City. That's what your Liberal candidate in North Vancouver stands for, not the Conservative low tax plan for jobs and growth.
Your help in this election could make the difference to protect Canada's economic future so please join us this Thursday evening and help re-elect Andrew Saxton as your Member of Parliament.
We look forward to seeing you.
PS If you are unable to attend on Thursday, please follow Andrew on Twitter and contact us to volunteer, get a lawn sign or donate on www.andrewsaxton.ca. Also, there is great information on our website about early voting
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