David
Bertschi is the nominee-elect for the Conservative Party
in the next federal election.
The Orléans
lawyer and former Liberal beat out two other candidates
to win the nomination during a nomination meeting at the
Shenkman Arts Centre Tuesday night.
He won
the nomination largely based on his ability to bring recruit
fellow disenfranchised Liberals to support him.
Bertschi
broke from the Liberal Party after having a falling out
with the Liberal leadership and the direction he felt the
Party was taking under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The
final draw for him was the SNC Lavelin affair.
In accepting
the nomination Bertschi thanked his supporters who included
former Conservative nominee Walter Robinson and Royal Galipeau's
widow Anne Palascio. Bertshci also used the moment to fire
up the troops as he plans to hit the ground running by starting
his door-to-door campaign the very next day.
"Orleans
is for the taking but we need to work together. I think
this riding does believe in Conservative values we just
have to remind them how important they are for survival
and benefit of our country," said Bertschi.
Although
he doesn't know who is running against yet, Bertschi says
his opponent is irrelevent. He plans to run on the Conservative
platform on on his own record of activism in the community.
"As
you know I have been very active in the community for years
and I've always maintained my values which more closely
align with the Conservative Party right know," says
Bertschi.
The Orléans
lawyer ran for the Liberal Party against Galipeau, who was
also a former Liberal, in 2011 and lost. He then put his
name forward as a candidate for the Liberal nomination in
the riding prior to the federal election in 2015 but he
was disqualified by the Liberal Party, thus allowing Andrew
Leslie to win the nomination unopposed.
Asked
if winning the Conservative nomination this time around
was vindication in any way, Bertschi said that vindication
was never his goal.
"I'm
not looking for vindication," sais Bertschi. "My
running for the nomination was about our community having
quality good representation and I'm honoured to have been
selected to represent the Conservative Party of Orléans.
Now it's time to get to work and win the election."
The Liberal
nomination, left vacant by the retirement of Andrew Leslie,
is being contested between Orléans Liberal MPP Marie-France
Lalonde and Liberal Riding Association president Khatera
Akbari. A date for Liberal nomination meeting has yet to
be set.
(This
story was made possible thanks to the generous support of
our local business partners.)
CommuniTree CONFERENCE from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Just Food Farm, Big Red Barn, 2nd floor - 2391 Pepin Court in Blackburn Hamlet. Check in and registration at 8 a.m. The Conference will include various panels, a networking break and a tour of a Community Food Forest. This is an opportunity for community members to share tree-related stories, data and projects and provide attendees with new ideas, information and resources to carry out tree-related initiatives in their communities.
HALLOWE'EN HIJINX from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Cumberland Heritage Village Museum. A day of family-friendly Halloween fun at the museum! Wear your costume and explore the origins of Halloween traditions as you collect some yummy treats along the way. Complete a scavenger hunt, create your own masquerade mask and more! Cost: $19.75 per family (2 adults + children); $7.75 adults; $5.50 seniors, children and students. Children 5 and under are free.
ORLEANS COMMUNITY SPAGHETTI SUPPER AND SILENT AUCTION hosted by the Orléans Lions Club from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the basement of St. Joseph Church, 2757 St. Joseph Blvd. Tickets: Adults $13 ; Children under 12 $5 available at th door or in advance from members or by sending an e-mail to 
