Gilles Bisson, NDP MPP for Timmins-James Bay is the first candidate to announce his intention to replace Howard Hampton as Ontario NDP leader. He has little chance of winning. He should be considered a token candidate from the North. Why can't he win?
1. He's too much like Howard Hampton (male, tied to the Rae government, and from Northern Ontario).
2. Despite being at Queen's Park since 1990, he has little name recognition. This won't help in a OMOV election.
3. He voted against the Endangered Species Act.
4. I can't imagine he will muster much, if any, support from the party's tiny caucus.
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While I agree that Bisson is a long shot, I have to disagree on two minor points. First, I don't think that being from Northern Ontario per se is a hinderance to any leadership candidacy. Second, it seems to me (and I could be proven wrong here) that caucus support will be one of the least important factors in this race. We have a tiny caucus, most of whom are long-time members and I think there is a sense among the membership of the party that they have largely failed to keep the Ontario NDP competitive. With a few notable exceptions (mainly the newer caucus members), I don't think that caucus endorsements will have much sway over the membership.
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