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‘I was nervous every day:’ Todd Doherty looks forward to serving Cariboo-Prince George a second-term

Doherty retains seat in House of Commons on Election Day 2019
Jess Balzer
Jess Balzer

For a sixth straight federal election, the Cariboo-Prince George riding is staying true to the blue in voting its next Member of Parliament.

Todd Doherty was both ecstatic and emotional when speaking at his campaign party in Prince George this evening (Oct. 21) after learning he will continue as the politician that’ll represent the north-central interior of B.C. in Ottawa for a second consecutive term.

CTV News declared incumbent Todd Doherty with the Conservative Party of Canada.

“Knowing what’ve gone through the last four years, it’s been very difficult,” said the 51-year-old said speaking to the media after his victory speech to voters. “I was nervous every day. I was very anxious and I have to, as I’ve said before, give full kudos to all of the candidates in the riding. They put it out there to represent a region and I enjoyed the conversations we’ve had throughout the last six weeks.”

Doherty’s return to Ottawa is an emotional one, he says, as he wasn’t expecting a ‘divisive’ 2019 federal election.

“This was the most ugliest part of the last four years in being elected,” he said. “It had been really tough on my family.”

One of the most well-known passions for the Conservative MP is helping Canada’s veterans and first responders in getting them the care they deserve.

Doherty was responsible for presenting and passing Bill C-211, which encompasses the federal framework to address the challenge of those people in service dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

“The messages I’m getting from right families across our country who said they can't vote for me, but they’re sending their support,” he explained as he hopes to continue with building the work he’s accomplished. “It’s humbling, but we know we have more to do. We have a serious epidemic in terms of our first responders that continue to choose death over life. I look forward to working on it whether that’s boosting our framework or something else.”

The Williams Lake and Prince George-raised politician also wants to get B.C.’s forestry works back to work and give them assurance of job security along with consistency.

As a sports fan, he adds, when it comes to the Liberal minority government, he can’t wait to get on the floor and ‘kick some ass’ for four more years.

Notable faces at Doherty's campaign party tonight included Dan McLaren, Roberta Squire, Kyle Sampson, DJ Ant and Cameron Stolz. 

Meanwhile, Tracy Calogheros came in second place, holding 20 per cent of the vote to Doherty's 52 per cent.

However, she's appreciative that the Liberal party is still the winning party tonight, despite the minority government.

"I do like the fact we have liberals in the driver's seat nationally, minority or otherwise," she said at her campaign party at Exploration Place. "I feel really good about our campaign. I learned a lot in 2015 about our riding and I’ve learned a lot this time in more in 2019 and I don’t believe I did anything I’m not proud of."

Calogheros understands the Conservatives have held the local riding since it was established in 2004, but believes the people have voted more towards a steady representative instead of voting for the party.

"There’s been three elections where the bulk of the vote has actually been progressive one and not a conservative one, but it’s been split and yet we wind up with a Conservative representative, so it creates a myth that we are a conservative area but we are not. [...] I’d like to see whoever represents us in the end-run be a key voice in that minority government someone who is able to bring our collaborative approach and our issues to bear on the discussions that are going to happen as we are forming policy."

NDP candidate Heather Sapergia says she learned a lot from her first federal election and is grateful to her campaign for sticking with her in the orange party's fight for change.

"One of the best things about this campaign is the amazing people that stepped forward and helped me," she said to PrinceGeorgeMatters. "I am just blown away by the expertise of people and they are willing to give so much of themselves to get me elected. It's humbling. I personally like minority governments. Some of the best legislations in Canada has happened with minority governments. That’s how we got public healthcare."

First-time runner Mackenzie Kerr credits a lot of friends and family for her Green candidacy as well.

She tells PrinceGeorgeMatters she plans on running whenever the next election is taking place and will continue to collaborate with politicians like Doherty to bring important issues forward.

"I think Todd's an amazing person and I hope to create a good relationship with him. There's a lot of issues on the doorsteps that we can bring forward, so we'll see what happens."

- with files from Kyle Balzer and Hanna Petersen, PrinceGeorgeMatters