Random Access

The speculation has already begun about whether Wajid Khan can win the next election in Mississauga-Streetsville.
Today in the Globe and Mail, columnist Jeffrey Simpson’s verdict is a strong no. “It is extremely unlikely Mr. Khan can win his seat as a Conservative, given the strong Liberal preferences of the area.”
Former MP Carolyn Parrish doesn’t think so either. “I think he’s thrown his electoral chances away,” says the newly-minted Ward 6 Councillor. “A lot of Tories will either stay home or go Green.”
Because he was a parachute from Forest Hill in the first place, who still doesn’t live in Mississauga, Parrish says Khan won’t reap any of the benefits that usually accrue to a local incumbent, which conventional wisdom says amounts to a maximum of 5-10 per cent of the vote and grows slightly the longer you are in office.
Nina Tangri says there are understandably mixed feelings about Khan in Tory ranks. Starting with her, of course, since she was the Conservative candidate who lost to the car dealer when he won his first term in 2004. Tangri sits on the federal executive that will decide tomorrow night how to proceed from here. It’s not too often that the group deliberates how it should deal with a nominated Liberal candidate who just landed in their laps with Stephen Harper’s lipstick all over his forehead.
“My own feeling is that he never felt comfortable in the Liberal Party after the Prime Minister (Paul Martin)” left said Tangri, the local insurance company co-owner, who is running herself for the provincial nomination in the same riding. Her only declared opponent so far for the provincial run is Dr. Carlan Stants.
The winner will face Bob Delaney, who beat Tangri in Mississauga West last time around.
The three-time local candidate doesn’t minimize the disgust that Khan’s action has provoked in many quarters nor the collateral damage that it causes to everyone in politics.
But all of the aforesaid doesn’t mean he can’t win the next election, argues Tangri, citing the re-elections of Keith Martin, Scott Brison and Belinda Stronach under similar circumstances.
As crossing the floor threatens to become a regular reality show, it is clearly no longer the kiss of death it once was.
The homogenization of politics has minimized, unfortunately, the importance of the local candidate. So much depends on the national campaigns and so much depends on the performance of the leaders in those campaigns that everything else pales in comparison.
Besides, Khan may not even be the Conservative candidate. There will be a nomination and if there are truly disgruntled members in Mississauga-Streetsville, that is the time to truly exact their pound of flesh. Tangri says a couple of people had previously shown interest. One of them is almost certainly Peter McCallion, who has dallied with the idea a couple of times before.
As for the Liberals, former Markham councillor Khalid Usman, who lost a bid to become a regional councillor in November, is interested in parachuting into town. He tried for the Mississauga-Erindale post that Parrish left in 2006 and was widely fingered as the man on the stage who made the infamous remark about Omar Alghabra’s nomination win being a victory for Islam.
Bob Rae, who seriously considered Mississauga-Erindale last time around, hasn’t made a decision and told News freelancer Owen Jarus via e-mail yesterday that it will be a while yet. Other potential Grit candidates include Masood Khan (making it a potentially confusing Khan-Khan dance), local dentist Dr. Farid Ayad and perhaps even Charles Sousa, the banker who is active in the Portuguese community. He failed to unseat Liberal incumbent Paul Szabo last time around but has a nice profile for Mississauga-Streetsville.
Steve Mahoney seems content to chair the WSIB and wait for the 20-year-old rumours of Hazel’s retirement to finally come true — maybe.