Peter Marcin has resigned as People’s Party of Canada’s candidate for the North Island-Powell River riding, citing inadequate resources and weak support for the breakaway party.
Marcin told the Peak he submitted his resignation via email to the local People’s Party electoral district association on Tuesday, July 9.
“I had some issues with the riding association; I just didn’t feel like I was getting a lot of support,” explained Marcin. “The organization is a bit fragmented; it’s just too spread out. I think the riding association thought they were getting a traditional candidate with thousands and thousands of dollars behind them. I wanted to run a different kind of campaign.”
Marcin said he did not realize how much money it takes in order to run a campaign.
“I’m not much of a person to go out begging for donations,” he said.
Marcin, who was nominated as the PPC’s local candidate in May, also said his campaign struggled to garner support from local voters. The Campbell River resident noted he had difficulty persuading local voters to sign his nomination papers early on in the process.
“I just don’t find the North Island folks very interested in much other than the North Island, and they’re all pretty happy up here,” he said. “I just thought more people would be interested in getting involved.”
Although he briefly considered running as an independent, the ex-candidate has now decided not to run at all.
Marcin said his experience has left him feeling “disillusioned.”
“I’m kind of disappointed in Canadians actually; I’m disappointed in the general public, they talk a lot, but they don’t do anything,” he added. “I was trying to appeal to the intelligence and common sense of the electorate, which, well, may or may not be a good choice.”
People’s Party of Canada’s local electoral district association did not respond to multiple requests for comment, or confirm whether the party would run another candidate in Marcin’s stead.
Marcin’s departure from the upcoming election campaign leaves Rachel Blaney (NDP), Mark de Bruijn (Green Party), Shelley Downey (Conservative Party) and Peter Schwarzhoff (Liberal Party) as confirmed candidates contesting the North Island-Powell River seat this October.
