Cathy Crowe will soon need your vote (so get to work)

Here’s some exciting news! According to an article in the Toronto Sun, activist and street nurse Cathy Crowe is about to be named the NDP candidate for Toronto-Centre MPP. This is the role most recently filled by Toronto mayoral contender George Smitherman, whose resignation took effect on Sunday.

Crowe is unopposed for the party candidacy. She will be anointed as the NDP candidate at a meeting on Sunday, 24 January 2010, unless an early by-election forces the party to bump it up. She’ll apparently be running against Liberal candidate and former Winnipeg mayor Glen Murray, and an undetermined Conservative candidate. The by-election is expected to be called next week.

I know this is just the beginning of a long road ahead, but I can’t help getting excited in spite of myself. A victory for Cathy Crowe and what she fights for would not only be a victory for her riding, but also for the province and the country in general.

If you’re a Toronto resident who cares about things like homelessness, health care and citizen action, and you haven’t heard of Cathy Crowe by now, then consider this your opportunity to learn about one of the coolest and most compassionate and tenacious people in your town. Start by reading up on the Toronto Disaster Relief Committee, an excellent organization that she co-founded in 1998.

That said, we’re only talking about her candidacy. She’s still got to win the election, and it won’t be an easy battle because… well, because she’ll be the NDP candidate, for one thing. If we want to get Cathy into office – and trust me, we do, regardless of whether or not we live in her riding – then we’ll need to get down to work even before they call the by-election.

If you live in her electoral district, then when the time comes, you can vote for her. If you don’t, then you can’t, but you can still encourage the people who can to do so. If you don’t know what electoral district you live in, this page will tell you.

What do you say we try to make this happen? Wouldn’t it be great if it did?

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