UPDATED April 12, 2025 3:00 pm
Federal Liberal candidate Jen Lash is encouraging voters to dump the NDP and cast their ballot strategically.
In a statement posted to social media Wednesday, Lash says a vote for her and the Liberals is the only way to deal with anxiety and fear about Donald Trump, a global trade war, and fears of a Conservative government.
“The NDP wants you to think that because they have won this seat before, they should win again. They are taking your vote for granted, assuming that voters will support them because they have in the past,” she says. “If we only ever did what we’ve always done, we’d still have phones on the wall instead of in our pockets, and women would need a husband’s permission for a credit card. Progress means knowing when to turn the page, leave the past behind, and embrace the future.”
She says polls suggest the NDP could lose its official party status, and voting for her would give her constituents a “seat at the government table.”
UPDATE: Lash provided VISTA Radio with an updated statement on Saturday, April 11.
“Support for the NDP is collapsing nationally and they are on track to lose official party status. The NDP are taking voter support for granted and using fear to apply pressure.
“Right now, Mark Carney is on track to be our next Prime Minister. If I am elected for North Island – Powell River, our riding will finally have a seat at the government table and I will be able to get more done for this riding than the NDP have ever been able to do in opposition. Now is not the time to be stuck in old patterns because of fear. Now is the time [to] leave the past behind, and embrace a future where our business, residents, community groups, municipalities and others can see what it’s like to have an MP who has the ability to make a real difference.
“By voting Liberal, we can ensure Aaron Gunn is not elected, vote for Mark Carney as our Prime Minister, and give North Island – Powell River a seat at the table.”
In an earlier version of her social media post, Lash claims that the North Island-Powell River riding has never had an MP who cared about its people and the economy, and was also in government. However, former Conservative MP John Duncan served the riding for 19 years, including while the party formed government. That comment has since been removed.
