Conservative Jake Stewart wins Southwest Miramichi Riding as Tory's Dominate at the Polls

New Brunswickers made their way to the polls Monday 27th, 2010.  the small province of just over 700,000 residents made their collective voice heard loud and clear.  Time for a change.

Jake's team stares intently at the TV looking for any early signs of the election

I was in Miramichi on election day to spend time with a great friend and conservative nominee Jake Stewart.  Since our time in Rome, Jake and I have stayed in contact and our friendship has grown over the years.  He played guitar at my graduation party and we both taught in Korea at the same time and with his wife Shannon, we found a way to meet up, experience Busan, Ulsan, and Seoul even though we worked at opposites ends of the tiny peninsula.

Jake as he first heard the news that he was elected MLA for the Southwest Miramichi

As a councilor from Blackville NB, Jake found himself at the heart of an arsenic scare.  With his youngest son suffering from various illnesses, Jake found himself taking on the province and the Liberal government.  With his son making trips to the IWK and with no answers from the Liberal government, Jake was irate and let the Liberal party know his frustrations through the media and every other avenue available to him.  As a result, he has grown a reputation for being quick tempered but this is far from the Jake I know.  A kind intellectual and a father of three who is fiercely loyal and will always battle for what he feels is right. The kind of no-nonsense you'd like to see from all elected politicians.

Jake, with 40 other Tories swept into power on Monday and to see the community support was incredible.  The biggest cheer during Jake's speech was reserved for his blunt assertion that "I may not be able to do everything you ask but if I can't I will tell you to your face."  For a community, and our country for that matter, the honesty of his statement was a welcome change from the usual rhetoric of too many politicians.

Though I'm not usually a supporter of the Conservative party, I am always supportive of friends who aim to make a difference and in this case Jake has a real chance.  I look forward to following his political career.