Results are in...for the moment

 Well, a couple of surprises...for the moment. I did not expect either Alison Coffin or Ches Crosbie to be in a losing position. The latter may not even get a recount, but I fully expect Alison to do so. A 53 vote margin is not an easy one to overcome, but with the reports we have been getting of "spoiled" ballots that were not spoiled, who knows. I do know that, when the leader of NDP was expected to be everywhere, then the District Association team takes on a more important role, and for whatever reason, that team did not show up in the numbers we have had before. There may have been some personal reasons for that, but they should have been put aside when all hands were needed on deck. Now, in spite of some encouraging signs, the party has been thrown into turmoil, just as we should have getting ready for a provincial convention.

We clearly need to spend more effort on organizing district associations. My effort in Harbour Main became a token attempt to give the party some presence in the election. We can't simply let Liberals and Conservatives have a clear run, especially since the responsibility for the current financial situation of the province can clearly be laid at their door. The call to create vibrant district associations has come from several quarters, including candidates who, like myself, were battling blindfold and with one arm tied behind their back.

The results of our provincial election should also be a wake-up call for the Riding Associations, especially in St John's East and St John's South. A federal election may be called within months, and today's Liberal victory will no doubt inspire their riding associations to prepare now for the coming campaign. Let's hope that when the writ is dropped, NDP candidates will have strong teams ready to pull out all the stops to increase the NDP presence in the House of Commons.

And here, we all will need to throw our support behind the two MHAs who have been elected, Jim Dinn and Jordan Brown. Congratulations to them both!

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