Riding-by-Riding Prediction
Port Coquitlam-Burke Mountain
April 2001
Port Coquitlam-Burke Mountain Home
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| Friendly Reminder for concerned citizens/desperate political operatives of Port Coquitlam-Burke Mountain: Postings with no name (annoymous) will be posted, postings with inconsistant fake names will not. | |||
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02/04/01 | Poll Junkie | Email: |
| Tom S, just ask George Puil and you'll find out who's right. Puil is the head of the local transit authority and has said quite clearly that: a) the Coquitlam Skytrain extension will not proceed beyond the planning stage; and b) the Millienium line (to Lougheed Mall) will be built but there is no funding in place to operate it. So, we could have the biggest white elephant mega-project in BC history, making fast ferries look like a picnic, because Farnworth and Dosanjh were scared to make SUV drivers pay pennies a day for a transit levy. Imagine a bright shiny new Skytrain extension sitting there idle, what a waste of taxpayer's money! I don't think that Campbell and the Libs are any better, but the NDP record on transit is awful, and the imminent transit strike will do nothing to help Farnworth, despite his cheap political trick of threatening to cut the gas tax funding for Translink during the strike. | |||
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02/04/01 | KS | Email: |
| Even though I think that the Liberals will win the govenment hands down, Mike Farnworth will be re-elected in Poco. He is very popular and he has done more for this riding probably more then any MLA and this is his home town. | |||
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04/04/01 | pb | Email: |
| This is always been an NDP riding - it's not going to change for the Campbell Liberals (reform). Farnsworth has worked hard and deserves to keep his job. | |||
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04/04/01 | Brittney | Email: |
| Farnworth will win,he is very popular,he appeals to people right across the political spectrum,he has a solid record in the community.Unlike the liberal who is not from poco,and has very little profile,Farnworth has grown up here,and has a very solid base of support,and is probabley one of the few New Democrats worth re electing. | |||
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05/04/01 | DMB | Email:politics101@telus.net |
| I doubt that this one will be as interesting on election night has it has being following all the posts to this riding. While I am certain that the NDP supporters are honest and sincere that Mike will win this riding when your party is 50% points behind the opposition Liberals and your man has been at the front and center of a government that has gone from one scandal to another, from crisis to another, the voters are not going to elect a nice guy, a popular guy, a hard working guy like Mike - no they will turf him out and by a large margin. Check the list of those nice guys, good guys, hard working guys that went down in 1987 in New Brunswick, 1991 in BC and nationally in 1993. History is not on Mike's side in this one. I like Mike. I think for an NDP'er he is honest and sincere but that won't save his hide - when the broom is out Mike will be swept out of office. | |||
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06/04/01 | Highland Flood | Email:jazzpolice_99@yahoo.ca |
| Let's take a look at who's running in this riding. A cabinet minister who quickly worked his way up through several junior ministries to the senior position of Health, where he only lasted several months before being demoted to the thankless portfolio of Social Services (that's what I still call it). His main claim to fame since that time: torpedoing TransLink's planned means of paying for road and transit improvements, and then taking up Glen Clark's idea of withholding gas taxes from TransLink during the strike, an idea quickly nixed by the premier. And this is the NDP candidate? His opponents? An inexperienced outsider who's not all that popular even among members of his own party, and the leader of a party founded under dubious circumstances and promoting a relentlessly anti-abortion agenda. The Greens don't have a candidate yet (I think), but it'll be interesting to see what happens when they do. She or he could pick up protest votes against all three other parties and their candidates. | |||
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07/04/01 | Amanda | Email: |
| Mike Franworth's personal popularity rate is quite high in PoCo. He has been canvassing on a weekly basis since beening elected in 1991. Mike is one of the hardest working MLAs and will continue working for the people of PoCo in gov't or in opposition. This is going to be a tough fight but I strongly believe that Mike will win PoCo again! | |||
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09/04/01 | Jan Arabica | Email: |
| Long history of voting NDP,this riding will return Farnworth this time around. | |||
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10/04/01 | Kayla | Email: |
| The NDP history in this riding is too long for it to be anything other than NDP | |||
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12/04/01 | G.N | Email: |
| Mike has been a good MLA, people know that. I expect as the campaign progress, the Libs. popularity will go down every time Campbell opens his mouth. The NDP pop. will rise, probably managing to win 10-15 seats, Mike will be one of those winners. | |||
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13/04/01 | Andrea | Email: |
| Mike's personal popularity is strong enough for him to win. He has been a great MLA for Port Coquitlam and that is what he should run on "who will be the best mla for poco". The choice seems quite clear | |||
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14/04/01 | Email: | |
| Farnworth? Are you kidding? The NDP are dreaming if they think they have a serious organization out there in PoCo ... there were less than 100 people when the Premier himself came out to support Fanrworth. Meanwhile, there must have been over 700 at the BC Liberal nomination. People just aint gunna go to the polls to vote NDP this time around, it is not worth anyone's time and Farnworth knows it. | |||
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18/04/01 | Initial | Email:adamyoshida@home.com |
| The Liberal organization on the gropund is excellent in this riding. It might be close but Farnsworth isn't personally popular enough to hold one with the NDP behind 66-17. | |||
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20/04/01 | Email: | |
| This is going to be won by mike farnworth,the liberal candidate is too inexperienced,and despite what he thinks,is not supported by most of the indian community. | |||
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21/04/01 | Kate | Email: |
| I don't live in Poco, but I do know this. Mike Farnworth is one of the most respected people in Victoria.No matter what party you were from.I also know that he is well respected in the business community,the medical community and by politicians from the various federal parties.Mike has been given alot of tough and challenging situations over the years,and he has always helped people find concensus and solutions.I know that had it not been for Mike's efforts there would not have been an agreement with the Federal government to restore some of the funding in this province for health care,which I would like to remind people are Liberals.I hope for the benefit of the people in PoCo they re-elect Mike.I only wish there were more politicians like him. | |||
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23/04/01 | Mr. R. Veld | Email:rveld@telus.net |
| It's time for a change in Port Coquitlam - Burke Mountain. The NDP has done tremendous damage to the wellbeing of the people in our beautiful Province over the past nine years. And anyone who would suggest that Mike Farnworth is not personally responsible for large portions of that damage, is either not sincere or alternatively uninformed. On the other hand, Karn Manhas is an intelligent young man who is a much stronger candidate than what some NDP'ers would like to believe. Anyone who knows Karn respects him and appreciates him. Mike should have gone for the mayor's job in Port Coquitlam while he had a chance and I am surprised that he did not. Karn will be our next representative in Victoria and so it should be. I believe in the good sense of the people in our riding, and I believe that our riding is more than due for a positive change. Karn Manhas and a BC Liberal government will bring us that positive change. | |||
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23/04/01 | ES | Email: |
| From the last election, NDP won by about 1400 votes. I live in POCO. Well, I see more NDP banners on lawns than liberals around my home. But i must say with many multicultural background in this riding, i don't think that the banners or signs say anything about the actual vote. The same NDP signs where at the same home of the NDP support of the federal election. So I think that the NDP vote is an small but filled energy, while the liberal vote is a more quiet vote. That being said, 1400 votes last time could turn against the NDP with so many angry people of the government. Should be a win, if not a big win for the liberals. | |||
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23/04/01 | Raj | Email: |
| I think Mike will take it. Only because I have met Karn and I have found him to be arrogant. And Mike has always been for his riding and all around nice likable guy. | |||
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23/04/01 | BN | Email: |
| I agree that the Liberals will form a majority government, but I think this riding will be one of the few the NDP holds on to. Mike Farnworth has done a good job in this riding; he is from Poco and knows the community and what it needs. Although his track record has not been excellent and his advice for the people in his riding can be improved, and I say that because I have tried to get his help, he has done a lot for this community and deserves to represent us. The Liberal candidate for this riding, Mr. Karn Manhas, although I'm sure he is a wonderful person, has not demonstrated his commitment to the community and his abilities in his resume, at least the one I read in the local paper. As for the transit disaster, I have to point out that the current "proposed" Skytrain extension will go as far as Coquitlam Centre only, which is not part of Port Coquitlam - Burke Mountain. As for withholding gas taxes during the transit strike, I personally think that this is a good idea. Coast Mountain Bus Company, which is now an autonomous division of TransLink, the Greater Vancouver Regional District transportation authority, and TransLink itself has too much power for an unelected board. Their power over Lower Mainland transit users is too great and goes unchecked. By withholding gas taxes (which could also mean a drop in our sky high gas prices - 74.9 cents at my local PetroCan at the time of this writing) TransLink might finally wake up that people need them to be sane, that people are counting on them to keep the buses running and that a $75 per vehicle per month transit levy is absolutely ridiculous! | |||
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24/04/01 | NB | Email: |
| I think that Mike will be one of a few NDP MLAs re-elcted. He has been a great MLA for PoCo and has gotten more for this community than any previous MLA. Mike is a great guy and the support of popular Mayor Scott Young will be enough to re-elect him | |||
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25/04/01 | Jon | Email: |
| My vote in PoCo is going to the Liberals. I think the only reason that there are so many people posting things and trying to create some hype around Farnworth is because he has hired top-NDP-spinster David Schreck to work the campaign. He was onn BCTV the other day trying to spin all kinds of things about the PoCo Liberal candidate and I have read it all here on the board. I have a feeling that is no coincedence since BCTV also covered this website. Spin all ya want David, the fact is we are NOT going to vote NDP (perhaps ever again) | |||
| 26/04/01 | Mark R. | Email:markusrobinson@hotmail.com | |
| OK, chill out all you posters. Lets look at the mathematics in this riding. Mathematically, placing former Reform BC votes and 75% of PDA votes towards the BC Liberals, add that with general anti-NDP sentimate, and the result will be a Liberal win. Even IF (note the if) NDP loses 5% of it's support in this riding (and I am most assured that it is even higher then that), the Libs take it. Sure, the NDP candidate here "could" win...but only if he manages to take some soft Liberal support, and a Unity candidate garners higher than 3-4%. So from a reasonable point of view, I'd say "to close to call" although if I had to call it, I'd be Liberal because of teh recent Ipso-Reid poll putting the Libs at 72%. | |||
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27/04/01 | JS | Email: |
| Whoah. Jon is way off base. David Shreck is not involved with Mike Farnworth's campaign. That is a pure lie. Even if he was, it is absolutely ridiculous to think that he orchestrated the number of pro-farnworth comments that there are. Face the facts Jon. Mike Farnworth has done so much for PoCo and he deserves to get re-elected. We need a strong opposition and Mike will be this. I throughly hope that he become leader of the NDP sometime in the future. He is a decent, honest man. And lately he has had some great press, with Brad West, a young man, continuing to write letters to the editor praising Farnworth for his work in many different areas. | |||
| 27/04/01 | BRY | Email: | |
| Even if the BC Liberals dropped 20 points over the remainder of the campaign, Karn Manhas, BC Liberal, would still be elected MLA. The NDP is done like dinner in this and every other riding in the lower mainland. What must be particularily disturbing for the few remaining NDP hacks is that several recent polls show that there is nothing they can say or do that will switch people back to the NDP. I cannot personally think of one NDP MLA that deserves to be re-elected. Like the Radiohead songs says, "you do it to yourself!" I saw Mr Manhas on VTV a week ago. He seems like a decent enough fellow that would make an excellent MLA | |||
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27/04/01 | Josh S | Email: |
| I believe Liberials will sneak out a win here. Mike is basically a joke, he has been up to his neck in the NDP mis-management including the granting of the Casino licence for his crimminal friend Glen Clark. All the players in the NDP are equaly to blame for destroying a once strong economy. It is clearly time for a change. | |||
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29/04/01 | Martin Eady | Email: |
| With the BC Liberals' commanding lead in the polls province-wide, there is no hope for the NDP in any urban riding that will move with the Liberal wave. All the hype about being locally popular, maybe that will add 5% to Farnsworth's total that's all. That's not nearly enough to overcome the huge wave against the NDP. Another BC Liberal gain, just like everywhere else in the region. | |||