The results of last week’s election may not have been what NDP candidate Mark Cairns, 24, was hoping for, but the IT technician and United Way volunteer was celebrating the fact he managed to win more votes this election compared to 2007, when he first ran.
Cairns would take third place in the race for Kitchener-Conestoga, gaining 17 per cent of the vote.
“People are a lot more accepting of the NDP now, and I found that I was able to have more open conversations going door to door this time around,” he said. “I never felt people were pre-judging me, and the results show it. We made improvements. We might not have won, but our numbers were up significantly from the last election.”
Over the next few weeks Cairns and his team will be looking at an after election assessment to find out what worked and didn’t work over the six-week campaign.
“We are going to look at everything piece by piece and figure out what really worked for us and amplify those things next time.”
Cairns said he believes the NDP is on the right track – he’s very optimistic about where the party is heading in the future.
“I am very proud of my team. They worked really hard, we had a great campaign and I am looking forward to doing it again. Look out, Mr. Harris,” he advised the newly-elected Conservative MPP.
