Who’s Who in the Zoo

Are you big on fulfilling your civic duty? Do you exercise your right to vote? Before I scare you away, rest assured that today’s post isn’t meant to influence your decision in any way shape or form. Just in case you haven’t picked a winning horse, or if you’re torn between two nominees, I thought Kingstonist could help the selection process along. Today’s post isn’t geared towards giving you the low down on the respective party platforms, or report on results from telephone polls, but rather, the focus will provide background information on each of our local candidates. In no particular order, here’s what you need to know about Kingston’s Liberal, Conservative, Green and NDP hopefuls.

Peter Milliken (Liberal): a longtime Kingston resident and Member of Parliament for Kingston and the Islands. He was educated at Queen’s, Oxford, and Dalhousie Universities, and went on to practice law from 1973 until 1988. At that time he was first elected into Parliament, and has since held positions such as Speaker of the House of Commons, and Chair of the Board of Internal Economy just to name a few.

Eric Walton (Green): has a worldly past, as he grew up in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. He studied at Queen’s, and co-founded Odyssey Travel, Logkit Inc, as well as a Multi-Doctor Family Medicine Clinic in downtown Kingston. He is a founding member of Kingston Environmental Action Project, and has served on the Board of Directors of The Social Planning Council, City of Kingston Pesticides Committee, and many more.

Rick Downes (NDP): a graduate of Toronto, Laval and Queen’s Universities. A long-time Kingston resident who has worked as an educator at KCVI, QECVI, Holy Cross, Regiopolis-Notre Dame, Calvin Park Public School and James R. Henderson Public School. He has served as a member of the Canadian Forces, and was a three-term City Councillor for King’s Town District, and former candidate for Mayor of Kingston.

Brian Abrams (Conservative): born and raised in Kingston, he has also lived in each and every Canadian province, some of which as a result of his 18-year career with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. He later went on to receive a law degree from Queen’s, and is now a partner in the law firm of Templeman Menninga LL.P. You might also know him through his musical career, where he is a big part of The Abrams Brothers band.

With this brief biographical and background information in mind, I invite you to learn more about each of these fine, upstanding gentlemen, and what they stand for. Don’t forget to vote on Tue, Oct 14th! Advance polling goes down on the 3rd, 4th , and 6th of October. For more information on where to vote, and what you need to show up with, please check out voter information services via Elections Canada.