They're the first ones with signs out and the Conservative candidates for October's federal election are also the first ones to open a local campaign office.
Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies candidate Bob Zimmer and Cariboo-Prince George candidate Todd Doherty cut the ribbon on their joint downtown Prince George office Wednesday afternoon, taking the chance to thank their volunteers and show off Team Conservative.
"Today is about recognizing those that are around us and those that have been helping us. We have been going almost a year," said Doherty, who won the nomination battle last December to replace outgoing MP Dick Harris as the Conservative candidate for Cariboo-Prince George.
The Conservatives and their volunteers have been pounding the pavement since January, said Doherty.
"We've walked over 70 kilometres, knocked on thousands of doors, made over 40,000 phone calls and I've worn out one set of tires on my truck, one pair of boots and one pair of shoes - and we're only just getting started," Doherty said.
"Our commitment back in December was to make sure that we engage our region, to be in our region and to listen. And I think we've done that."
That work is necessary despite the decades-long representation by Conservative members and the party's other right-wing predecessors in the two P.G. electoral districts as there's no such thing as a safe riding, said Zimmer. And the fact that the party is the most-visibly prepared with candidates in place and in the public eye since the writ dropped on Aug. 2 also doesn't give them an advantage, he added.
"I won't get too political today, but we think we have a pretty good economic story. We've weathered some storms over the last number of years, we think we have a pretty good story and we want to continue that on into the future," said Zimmer. "And I think, under the leadership of our prime minister, we've done pretty good. Nobody's perfect, but I think we've done pretty good."
Combining the office (at 1520 Third Ave.) for the two ridings is a sign of the teamwork that's already taken place and that would continue if both were elected to go to Ottawa, Doherty said.
Wearing a Doherty "Together we can" button on his lapel, Zimmer said it's nice to have someone putting in the work alongside him.
"In the north, sometimes we work alone up there. It's nice to have some people in Prince George that really work hard together," he said.
