Green Party supporters can make a difference during the provincial election, says federal Green Party Leader Elizabeth May.
May was at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Charlottetown Sunday where she told a crowd of about 150 people the Green Party is making a difference in Canada.
"I know you can make a big difference here on Prince Edward Island," she said.
May spent about an hour-and-a-half talking to the largely partisan crowd about different issues she has been dealing with since becoming the first Green Party candidate ever elected in Canada.
She won the Saanich-Gulf Islands riding in B.C. with almost 50 per cent of the vote in the last election.
May said she represents a riding where people were prepared to do something different and like P.E.I., her riding has a high voter turnout.
"I think there's some similarities," she said.
During her presentation, May talked about Canada's role as a peacekeeping nation, which she said has changed under the Stephen Harper government.
She also took aim at the government's bill that targets human trafficking, which she said is really an anti-refugee bill.
"There's nothing in here about human smuggling," she said.
May briefly touched on the Provincial Nominee Program and while she said she didn't want to get into too much detail about it, the program shows a contrast in the country's immigration system.
"It means we fast-track those people who have wealth," she said.
A lot of May's speech dealt with the importance of voting and at times sounded like a campaign rally as she talked about casting a ballot for a party that has honesty and integrity.
"Wonderful, dedicated people who are not really in politics," she said.
May said a lot of people who are disillusioned with politics think voting empowers politicians and they won't vote because they don't like how politicians behave.
Some politicians count on people not voting, she said.
"We've got to tell youth they're counting on you not to vote."
May said one of the problems is that young people think their lives won't be affected by politicians.
"If we could get the youth vote up in this country, well we'd have a very different political outcome every single election," she said.
The importance of voting came up again when May said young people need to vote to make a difference, especially in the climate movement.
"You can live off the grid, you can be a hundred per cent vegan and local organic, but if you don't vote you might as well be driving around in a hummer," she said.
When asked if she had any advice for P.E.I.'s Green Party Leader Sharon Labchuk, May said she didn't, but asks voters to think about what it would be like to elect a Green MLA.
It won't change the outcome of the election, but it will provide a voice of conscience in an election that has dealt with issues around ethics, she said.
"One green voice would be very effective."
For her part, Labchuk was glad to have May in Charlottetown and said she is well loved by everyone.
"It's been a good boost to the campaign," Labchuk said.
rross@theguardian.pe.ca
Fortunately, there are a lot of people who don't agree with you. One Green voice in the legislature would have a significant impact, because issues would not be owned by the status quo. Sharon has already helped to change a lot in this province, including legislation. Most people don't know that it's been her effecting those improvements. That was one of Elizabeth May's points: one person *can* make a difference. It all starts with one person - and I see it growing.