Conservative Chris Lewis launches re-election campaign in Essex
Lewis highlighted affordability as a key campaign issue at his headquarters on Wednesday night
Conservative Party candidate Chris Lewis kicked off his re-election campaign in Essex Wednesday night, seeking a third term as the region's MP after first being elected in 2019.
At his campaign headquarters on Talbot Street North, Lewis said his campaign is about looking forward.
"It's never been about me. It's about Essex and it's about Canada, it's about our generation today, but truthfully, what it's really about is about future generations," Lewis said.
"We can't fix the problems the Liberals have made in the last 10 years, but we can certainly look to the future with a smile, with ambition, with a sense of urgency to get out there and make life more affordable."
Lewis says that issue — affordability — is one of the top concerns he hears when out campaigning.
Seniors, he said, tell him can't afford groceries while young mothers say they can't afford diapers.
Canadians go to the polls on April 28 under the shadow of U.S. threats against the country's sovereignty – both economic and territorial.
U.S. tariffs, threats dominate national campaign
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly referred to Canada as the 51st state and threatened to annex the country using economic force.
On Wednesday, he announced a 25 per cent tariff on imported automobiles to take effect April 2, despite warnings from U.S. auto makers about a negative impact on the heavily integrated North American auto sector.
Lewis was joined Wednesday night by fellow Conservative candidates Dave Epp, running in Chatham-Kent—Leamington, and Mark McKenzie, running in Windsor—Tecumseh—Lakeshore.
Lewis said his work with his party's auto caucus makes him well positioned to stand up for Windsor-Essex auto workers.
"I understand intrinsically exactly what needs to be done," he said.
"I'm just asking for a chance to unleash … the knowledge and the communication and all of the opportunities – all of the bridges that I've built to really make sure this thing is done."
He also emphasized the need to support small and medium-sized businesses.
"We will not have any money for social programs of any type if we don't have businesses," he said.
"They are the taxpayer. And so it's incumbent upon us, each and every one of us, to ensure that we support them, especially in the face of the tariff threats."
Lewis is facing off in the riding against Liberal candidate Chris Sutton, NDP candidate Lori Wightman and the People's Party of Canada's Jason Henry.
Popular local candidates can buck trends, political scientist says
University of Guelph political scientist Julie Simmons said the current election campaign has been heavily leader-focused, given the name recognition of the national leaders and the amount of media attention focused on them.
But established local candidates sometimes have a local following that allows them to buck larger trends related to their party's fortunes.
"It's certainly hard to make yourself immune to the dynamics that are happening at the national level," Simmons said.
"But if you do have a local presence and familiarity with voters and name recognition … that can help you ride out some of those other polling dynamics that we see happening on a national level."
Lewis Wednesday focused his remarks on election issues as he greeted supporters.
"We're going to keep it a very, very positive campaign, an incredibly positive campaign and upbeat campaign," he said.
If Lewis wants to win the seat again, he should focus on promoting the Conservative party as being best able to bring prosperity to the country, Simmons said — something Lewis appeared to do on Wednesday.
"I trust Levi — that's my grandson — I trust Levi's future with Pierre Poilievre," he said.
"If I didn't, I wouldn't be in front of you today."