Former Liberal MPP for Kingston and the Islands says she wants her old job back and will be campaigning from now until 2022 to be Kingston’s next provincial member of Parliament.
Sophie Kiwala served as Liberal MPP from 2014 to 2018 but lost her seat to current NDP MPP Ian Arthur, with Arthur bringing in nearly 40 per cent of the vote to Kiwala’s just over 27 per cent share.
She was one of many Liberal incumbents to lose their seats that election, with the party shrinking down to just seven elected members, one member shy of reaching the Ontario legislature’s official party status.
Despite the defeat, Kiwala says she’s got her sights set on 2022, when she hopes to be elected for Kingston and the Islands once again.
“After the 2018 election, we rebuilt our party and we’re still in the process of rebuilding the party, and there’s something that’s really exciting about that. It’s like rewriting a chapter of a book for the first time and you’ve got the whole chapter to work with,” Kiwala said in an interview on Tuesday.
The former MPP says she’s interested in running, because, as she put it, “there’s a lot of work that still needs to be done.”
Kiwala pointed to securing a half a billion dollars in funding for phase two of the Kingston General Hospital redevelopment and $60 million for Kingston’s third crossing construction as major wins during her tenure.
Since leaving her post, Kiwala says she’s seen provincial policy changes that trouble her.
“Unfortunately, we’ve seen a lot of destruction of some very good programs in the province of Ontario. I’m concerned about what’s happening in our school system. I’m concerned about the long term care homes. I’m concerned about addictions,” Kiawala said.
As for the effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic, Kiwala said she feels passionate about pushing for a “complete redo” of the long-term care system in Ontario.
“I would like to see that the Long Term Care Act is reopened and that we approach that subject with a much more compassionate view of individual residents,” Kiwala said.
Despite the nomination process still being years away, and acknowledging a lot can change in two years, Kiwala says she will be campaigning for the foreseeable future to prove to locals that she, and her party, are still up for the job.
“It’s up to Liberals to get engaged with the process to make sure that their voices are heard. And I’m here to listen. And I’ve been continuing to listen since 2018 and seven years before,” Kiwala said.
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