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PCs 'outgunned' by the Greens in Guelph says Ferraro

PC candidate Ray Ferraro is proud of his campaign but won't be throwing his hat in the ring again

The polls were closed for no more than 15 minutes before the results rolled in and the election in Guelph was called in favour of Ontario Green Party leader Mike Schreiner.

It was an historic development for Ontario but a deep disappointment for PC candidate Ray Ferraro and his supporters who watched in apparent disbelief as reports confirmed the numbers. What promised to be a tight race was over in minutes.

Ferraro placed a distant second with less than half the votes Schreiner and the Greens received and less than 200 votes more than third-place candidate Aggie Mlynarz from the NDP. Liberal candidate Sly Castaldi placed a distant fourth with less than half the votes captured by the NDP.

“I just want to thank the great guys, the staff and everybody that worked hard,” Ferraro told his stunned group of supporters gathered at the party headquarters in the Grange Plaza. “I don’t think we should be embarrassed that we ran a nice clean campaign. We just got out muscled and outgunned by the Greens, I guess.”

The PCs faired better provincially capturing 76 seats and securing a majority government under party leader Doug Ford. The NDP led by Andrea Horwath is the new opposition party with 40 seats. The Liberals held on to seven seats and the Greens captured one.

The PC win was bittersweet for Ferraro who had a lot plans for Guelph if he won.

“My aim and objective is to work for Guelph because Guelph hasn’t got its fair share of provincial moneys in the last 10 years,” he said. “I know the reasons for that so it was going to be very challenging.”

Ferraro faced criticism early in the race when Ford selected him as candidate without a formal nomination convention. He was also criticized for missing many of the candidate debates due to personal reasons.

“We ran a low-key campaign,” said Ferraro. “We did most of our work with groups.

I had interviews with at least 36 different groups, industry and special interest people as well as doctors and nurses and I found that to be very refreshing. I love the one on ones where they can bring me up to speed.”

Ferraro’s younger brother was at the campaign headquarters election night to show his support. Rick Ferraro was a Liberal MPP in Guelph from 1985 to 1990 and it was a long considered that the Liberals had a grip on the Italian and ethnic votes in the city.

Ray Ferraro said it was his disappointment with the policies of Kathleen Wynne and the Ontario Liberals that convinced him to turn blue and run for the PCs.

“Many Italians came to me and said we have always voted Liberal but we are going to vote for you and I was happy with that,” he said.

The PCs didn’t win in Guelph but it wasn’t a complete loss for the local riding association.

“We aren’t going to have a dime of debt,” said campaign CFO Adam Currie. “That is the first time that has happened provincially and federally in over a decade here in Guelph. It is something uncommon in any campaign so, I am happy about that from my perspective.”

The campaign also helped build support for the party locally.

“I have never been so proud about what we have accomplished as a group,” said Bob Coole president of the Guelph PC Riding Association. “We didn’t win but we improved our vote count over last time. That’s a small blessing. It would have been nice to win but the Green Party put on a much better show. We have four years to work on finding another candidate and get ready for the next election.”

The next election won’t include Ferraro, at least, not as a candidate.

“No, I don’t think so,” he said. “It was a good experience and I am seasoned enough to realize what I was getting into. I will be looking at what I can contribute to the powers that be either on city council or provincially. I will be like a watchdog.”

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Troy Bridgeman

About the Author: Troy Bridgeman

Troy Bridgeman is a multi-media journalist that has lived and worked in the Guelph community his whole life. He has covered news and events in the city for more than two decades.
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