The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

th ei fp .c a Th e IF P -H al to n H ill s | T hu rs da y, O ct ob er 24 ,2 01 9 | 4 held a majority in Canada signals an increase in pop- ularity for younger parties. As the NDP in the riding with candidate Andrew Bascombe saw a one per cent increase compared to the previous election with 9.2 per cent, the Green Par- ty and its local contender Ralph Martin jumped over into the third-place posi- tion, bringing in 12.6 per cent of Wellington-Halton Hills voters. Even electoral newcom- er the People's Party of Canada, represented local- ly by Syl Carle, earned more votes in the riding than any fifth-placed party since 2004 with 2.2 per cent of the vote. Overall, roughly 5,000 more votes were cast in Wellington-Halton Hills than were cast four years ago. "I think we're quite lucky to have Michael Chong representing us again," said Gemma Patey, the Independent's citizen journalist during the elec- tion. While Wellington-Hal- ton Hills demonstrated voter unity, Patey said she was disheartened with the federal results. "We see the way people voted is really divided by electing a minority govern- ment," she said. "We need to have a little more unity to address big issues like climate change and indige- nous issues." A minority govern- ment, Patey said, will face barriers going forward. However, it might also be an opportunity for indi- vidual MPs to have more of a say. "In this government, Michael Chong will get his opportunity to pursue his personal beliefs a little bit further," Patey said. Considered a moderate within the party, Chong said it's important for MPs to represent their constitu- ents even if it means dis- agreeing with party lead- ers or prime ministers. "It's the basis of our Westminster parliamenta- ry system," Chong said, "and we've strayed too far from that in recent de- cades." In that capacity, Chong teamed up with members from each federal party to form the Climate Caucus. In May, he spoke in the House of Commons to urge the House to declare a cli- mate emergency, and as a result, commit the country to meeting its national emissions target under the Paris Agreement. But Chong's environ- mental focus has been evi- dent since as early as 2004, when he declared personal support for the Kyoto Pro- tocol despite his party's op- position. "We don't elect parties or prime ministers," Chong said during an all candi- dates debate at Acton Dis- trict High School just days prior to the election. "We elect legislatures." While the federal Liber- als have formed a minority government, Chong said constituents had raised several concerns he plans to bring back to Ottawa ranging from the environ- ment, to the cost of living, as well as how the Liberal government handled the SNC Lavalin case. Meanwhile, local Liber- al candidate Lesley Barron attributed the outcome at the polls in Wellington- Halton Hills to vote split- ting. "I think people in this riding are ready for pro- gressive change; we just have to get them to vote a bit smarter if we're going to do that," she told the Inde- pendent. "But I'm very relieved to see we have a Liberal gov- ernment in power," she added. "I was much more nervous about that than actually getting myself elected." Going forward, Barron said she's not sure what the election results will mean for the riding. "I think the team will have to get together in the coming months and look at what exactly happens with a minority government," she said. "Minority govern- ments do not have a history in Canada of being that sta- ble." In local Green Party candidate Ralph Martin's eyes, there's now a risk that bold initiatives needed to address climate change and economic challenges won't be implemented for the sake of political equi- librium. "There's an opportunity for more meaningful dia- logue among MPs - within and across parties - to find buy-in to move ahead with what Canadians actually need," he said. "For the sake of Welling- ton-Halton Hills, there's an opportunity for our MP to work with the minority Liberal government to sup- port the climate emergen- cy resolution of Halton Hills and show how our community can lead the way." FEDERAL ELECTION Michael Chong gets a celebratory hug after his re-election. Bryan Myers/Torstar Local journalism makes a difference. Support us by registering at theifp.ca QUESTION: WHAT DO THE FEDERAL ELECTION RESULTS MEAN FOR HALTON HILLS? CONCLUSION: SOME COMMENTERS SAID THE MINORITY LIBERAL GOVERNMENT MAY LACK STABILITY, WHILE OTHERS SAY IT COULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR INDIVIDUAL MPS LIKE MICHAEL CHONG TO HAVE MORE OF A SAY. Continued from page 1 YOUNGER PARTIES SHOW INCREASE IN POPULARITY IN HALTON HILLS STORY BEHIND THE STORY The Independent sent reporters to speak with candidates throughout the Wellington-Halton Hills riding about this question. We also engaged citizen journalists and heard what they had to say on the matter.