Fourth election win humbling, says McColeman

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After an election campaign that he said took him on a bit of roller-coaster ride, Phil McColeman felt a sense of calm in the hours leading up to Monday’s federal vote.

Polls released late in campaign put the veteran Conservative neck-in-neck with Liberal opponent Danielle Takacs. A last-minute visit to Brantford by party leader Justin Trudeau on Saturday suggested the Liberals felt they had a chance to take the riding, which McColeman has held since 2008.

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He took the day off from campaigning on Sunday before calling in a couple of local big-name Conservatives, former MPP Phil Gillies and assistant Crown attorney Larry Brock, for some targeted door knocking to ensure the party faithful got out to vote in Brantford-Brant.

“We got up early and got a good start,” said McColeman. “We covered a lot of ground. I felt more and more at ease as the day went on.”

It turned out McColeman’s quiet confidence was spot-on as he took an early lead in the polls that didn’t waver, resulting in his fourth election win.

“We have been able to hold this riding when lots of people thought we were a one-shot wonder in 2008,” he told supporters gathered at the Polish Hall on Pearl Street. “It has been 11 great years.”

It’s been more than a year since McColeman announced his intention to seek a fourth term. He and his band of volunteers hit the campaign trail in early July, walking neighbourhoods and talking to constituents.

It was a strategy of taking nothing for granted and earning one vote at a time that McColeman said led to Monday night’s win.

“We went into the campaign with a plan and executed it,” said campaign manager Fernando Minna. “We had an amazing group of volunteers who worked their hearts out for 40 days. Our ground game was excellent. The mindset is we have to earn it – it’s not in the bag until all the votes are in the box.”

Local Liberals, led by candidate Danielle Takacs, “threw everything they had at us,” said Minna.

“We were definitely competing out there for every vote.”

In the end, the numbers were almost identical to the 2015 election when McColeman took 40.89 per cent of the votes compared to Takacs with 30.70.

When all of the riding’s 235 polls had been counted by early Tuesday morning, McColeman had 26,723 votes (40.45 per cent) and Takacs 20,250 (30.65 per cent).

NDP candidate Sabrina Sawyer earned 12,972 votes; the Green Party’s Bob Jonkman 4,165; People’s Party of Canada’s Dave Wrobel 1,309; Veterans Coalition Party of Canada’s Jeffrey Gallagher 392; and independent candidates John Turmel and Leslie Bory, 143 and 114 votes, respectively.

“To know that people continue to support me is one of the most humbling things,” said McColeman. “I thank the voters of Brantford-Brant for showing their confidence. The others were credible candidates that people could get behind.”

McColeman’s win was tempered by the Conservatives national showing, with the party winning the popular vote but losing the election to Trudeau’s Liberals.

“It’s a little bittersweet,” he said. “We hoped for a better result nationally but we have gained (seats). We’ve held them to a minority tonight. That is a big achievement.

“I would have liked it to be in our favour, but the voters are always right.”

McColeman said he is particularly disappointed by the defeat of close friend Lisa Raitt, who served as the Conservative Party’s deputy leader. Raitt lost her seat in Milton to former Olympic athlete Adam van Koeverden. McColeman supported Raitt in the party’s leadership contest, which she lost to Andrew Scheer.

But McColeman said he’s pleased about the Conservatives gains, holding the opposition with 121 seats, up from 99 in the 2015 election.

“We are going to be strengthened and that’s exciting. I’m looking forward to the challenges ahead.”

McColeman said the decision to seek re-election was a difficult one. At 64, he said he and wife Nancy have been considering retirement. Encouraged by a belief that the Conservatives could topple the Liberals, McColeman embarked on another run.

“I have a very deep commitment to this community. Whenever I decide not to run again, it’s not going to be easy.”

In his victory speech, McColeman said he is especially grateful to Nancy, whom he married in 1975, calling her “his strength and backbone.” The McColemans have a developmentally-challenged adult son who requires constant care.

“Nancy is the caregiver to our son 24-7. When I’m in Ottawa she carries the load.”

But McColeman said son Jordan also “has three other moms” in his older sisters, all of them “exceptional women.”

“All of this wouldn’t be possible without their support.”

McColeman said one of his first priorities as he embarks on another term as MP is “making a case in Ottawa for health care in this community.”

He said a “20- to 30-year horizon” needs to be set for local health care that includes new buildings, new technology and attracting new professionals to practice in Brantford-Brant.

He said he also plans to make a case in Ottawa for improved infrastructure, including roads and bridges, which will allow the riding to grow.

“The future of this community is great. It’s booming and will continue to boom.”