Northern Ontario Greens trying not to be distracted by very public party infighting

Northern Ontario Green Party organizers say their movement is strong enough to survive the turmoil surrounding their national leader.

This week the public infighting reached a low when it was revealed that the federal party is taking a dispute with its leader, Annamie Paul, to court. 

Glen Hodgson has worked to build up the party in the riding of Parry Sound-Muskoka over the last 20 years, including a half-dozen runs for MP. 

It is the riding where the Greens have fared the best in the north, finishing third and capturing 15 per cent of the vote in 2019.

Hodgson, currently the riding association president in Parry Sound-Muskoka, doesn't think all that work will be undone by one scandal. 

"To suggest that an entire party can be pushed back or lose its focus or lose its mandate because of one event or because of some actions, not that things that are going on aren't serious in nature or need to be dealt with, but this is a movement and it's a movement of concerned people that largely have rallied around their concern primarily about the future of the planet," he says.

Hodgson says the timing is the worst part of this Green Party squabbling.

A federal election is expected to be called in the coming weeks and wildfires burning across the country are setting the stage for a serious conversation about climate change. 

"Yes of course this having an impact in terms of people watching closely," says Hodgson.

"But I'm confident that if a party recognizes a problem and then deals with it, even if that looks messy, it's probably a good thing in the end, because don't we want leaders, don't we want a party that understands that sometimes there will be problems and the proper way to deal with them isn't to sweep them under the rug?"

Green Party losing popularity as it engages in 'public and ugly' infighting: polling expert

3 years ago

Duration 2:55

Eric Grenier, publisher of TheWrit.ca, tells CBC's Power & Politics that the Green Party is polling at its lowest level since Annamie Paul became the party's leader, and the public 'kneecapping' of Paul 'is not helping' its popularity.

So far, the Greens have only a handful of nominated candidates across the country, including two in northern Ontario.

Craig Gravelle just joined the party earlier this year and will have his name on the ballot in the Nickel Belt riding.

He says he is busy knocking on doors and talking to voters and is not paying much attention to the internal party disputes. 

"I don't think most people in their lives really care too much about this kind of stuff. People really want to know what I'm going to do in Ottawa to fight for them," he says.