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Wednesday October 26, 2022

October 26, 2022 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday October 26, 2022

New Mayor, Strong Mayor?

Some said the race to become Hamilton’s next mayor was hers to lose from the outset.

October 1, 2022

And indeed Andrea Horwath took charge of her political destiny, winning a close race to become the first woman to wear the chain of office in the city.

Horwath pulled out the victory over main rival Keanin Loomis, who traded the lead as votes trickled in throughout the evening. Bob Bratina finished a distant third.

“Hamiltonians deserve to have a city that they know they can trust what’s happening at city hall,” she told a jubilant crowd of supporters downtown at The Spice Factory.

She thanked Loomis, Bratina and other candidates. “We do not agree on everything, but we all love this city.”

Horwath finished with 59,216 or 42 per cent of the vote, while Loomis was runner-up with 57,553 or 41 per cent. Bratina garnered 17,436 and 12 per cent.

The former Ontario NDP leader and Hamilton Centre MPP expressed gratitude to voters. “We all believe in the same thing: We believe in Hamilton.” (The Hamilton Spectator)

August 17, 2022

Meanwhile, Ontario’s big city mayors elected to a new term in office may soon have enhanced powers at their disposal to tackle tough issues like housing.

But experts say the use of so-called “strong mayor” powers may not be clear-cut, and their use may be limited by budgetary constraints and other factors.

Housing was a major election theme in municipal campaigns across the province, particularly related to affordability.

Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government recently passed a law giving mayors of Toronto and Ottawa veto power over bylaws that conflict with provincial priorities like housing, and Premier Doug Ford says the powers will be extended to other cities in a year.

Monday night’s municipal election results mean Ford could be extending those powers to former foes in provincial politics, with former leaders of the NDP and Liberals elected as the mayors of Hamilton and Vaughan, respectively.

McMaster University political scientist Peter Graefe says it will be interesting to see how different municipalities use the strong mayor powers depending on local pressures on councils and from voters. (CTV News)

From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro …

Saturday May 2, 2015

May 1, 2015 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday May 2, 2015

Rachel Notley campaign has ‘shades of Jack Layton’

The Alberta NDP is poised for a historic breakthrough, and a lot of that momentum can be credited to the party’s leader Rachel Notley.

An exclusive CBC poll suggests Notley, who was first elected to the Alberta Legislature in 2008, is driving the party’s surge with a strong campaign. She was given the highest approval rating at 53 per cent when Albertans were polled by Return On Insight (ROI).

“Rachel Notley has built this campaign around her. It has shades of Jack Layton, in that she is quite popular and she has a lot of energy,” said ROI president Bruce Cameron.

“Most Albertans, regardless of who they are voting for, would acknowledge the NDP has run the best campaign so far.”

Wildrose Party Leader Brian Jean received a 34 per cent approval rating while Progressive Conservative Leader Jim Prentice sits at 31 per cent.

Notley is taking the latest poll results in stride.

“People are looking for something different. They’re looking for an alternative,” she said. “They’re looking for a government that will reflect their opinions on issues of fairness, on protecting our education and our health care and protecting jobs, so I’m encouraged by what the polls show, but I don’t bank on them and I don’t think most politicians do these days.”

Jean also weighed in on the several polls released in the last 24 hours, while on a campaign stop in Calgary.

“It’s not going to change our principles, which is really the key to this race, because we are the only party that stands up for Alberta’s principles and priorities,” said Jean.

PC Leader Jim Prentice hasn’t commented on the poll results, but used a major fundraising speech Thursday evening to attack the NDP as potential killers of jobs and investment. (Source: CBC News)

Published in The Prince George Citizen, Gull Lake Advance (Saskatchewan), Duncan Citizen (BC), Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal

Tuesday November 13, 2012

November 13, 2012 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Tuesday November 13, 2012

Some Light Reading

Canadians are slowly losing trust in Parliament and political parties, and share some of the toughest views in the American hemisphere about their national leader, according to a new 26-country survey.

The survey by The Environics Institute, part of an investigation into political attitudes in 26 countries in the Americas, found that Canadians have been shedding some of their optimistic and positive views on politics and government

The survey found only 16 per cent of Canadians place “a lot of trust” in their Prime Minister, putting Stephen Harper near the bottom among all leaders in the Americas.

“In an international context, Harper has a lower level of trust than almost every other national leader in the hemisphere,” Mr. Neuman said.

The levels of trust are also low for the Canadian Parliament (17 per cent), political parties (10 per cent) and mass media (6 per cent). The findings come after Canada lived under a series of minority governments from 2004 to 2011, fuelling a sense of growing partisan bickering in Ottawa. (Source: Globe & Mail)

Meanwhile, less than two years after lovelorn fans were first forced to accept that young pop superstars Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez were a romantic couple, their followers are reeling at news the pair are no more.

After weeks of rumours the couple was on the outs, E! News reported Friday that the teen pop stars broke up in recent days. The Associated Press confirmed the split on Saturday, citing an anonymous source not officially authorized to speak about the couple’s relationship status.(Source: CTV News)