Broadcaster and environmental activist David Suzuki is the latest celebrity to weigh in on Victoria鈥檚 mayoral contest, throwing his support behind incumbent Mayor Lisa Helps.
Suzuki鈥檚 celebrity endorsement is a counterpoint to music producer David Foster鈥檚 support of challenger Mike Geoghagen.
Suzuki said that 鈥渁t this critically important time for our planet鈥� he would not vote for anyone who doesn鈥檛 have a climate action plan.
鈥淚鈥檝e seen Lisa鈥檚 plan and I鈥檝e seen Lisa in action. Everyone in Victoria who cares about the future of our planet should vote Lisa Helps, for mayor,鈥� said Suzuki, best known for his CBC television program The Nature of Things.
Suzuki鈥檚 endorsement is the second one rolled out by the Helps campaign this week, after former city councillor and NDP MP Denise Savoie came out in favour of Helps, saying she admires Helps鈥� 鈥渦nwavering focus on constructive and positive action in the face of anger and hate.鈥�
Geoghagen has been using Los Angeles-based Foster鈥檚 video message of support on Facebook and in radio ads.
鈥淵ou need to vote Mike Geoghagen for mayor. This guy is amazing. It鈥檚 good for you. It鈥檚 good for me. It鈥檚 good for the city of Victoria,鈥� Foster says from behind a piano in the video. 鈥淚 promise you he will not let you down.鈥�
Geoghagen said he鈥檚 not surprised by Suzuki鈥檚 endorsement of Helps.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 to be expected. Lisa Helps has modelled herself as a green politician. She鈥檚 presented her bike lanes in the context of saving the planet,鈥� Geoghagen said.
Helps noted Suzuki鈥檚 endorsement comes on the heels of a report by UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that warned there are only 12聽years to complete a conversion from fossil fuels to green energy to prevent a dangerous destabilization of the Earth鈥檚 climate.
鈥淚 am very worried because this campaign has had very little conversation whatsoever about climate change, sustainability, the environment, and it鈥檚 a core value of Victoria,鈥� Helps said.
Geoghagen has picked up other endorsements, including from Langford Mayor Stew Young and former Victoria mayoral candidate Rob Duncan, who has unofficially dropped out of the race in support of Geoghagen.
Geoghagen said the endorsement from Duncan, a housing advocate, is one that should resonate with voters.
鈥淚 think the biggest concern that people would have in this election is affordable housing and that鈥檚 why I was very pleased to get the endorsement of candidate Rob Duncan,鈥� he said.
鈥淚f people are swayed by the people endorsing them, more power to them. Otherwise, I go to the doors and I get my endorsements there,鈥� said Stephen Hammond, NewCouncil.ca mayoral candidate.
Bruce McGuigan鈥檚 campaign manager, Pamela Grant, said they鈥檝e deliberately eschewed such endorsements. 鈥淲e鈥檝e actually had some offers but we鈥檝e decided not to go with endorsements because a lot of them are from outside of Victoria,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his is about Victoria, so I really don鈥檛 care what David Foster thinks about who should be running in Victoria because he doesn鈥檛 live here.鈥�
The endorsements so far represent 鈥渁n odd combination of star-power and local politics,鈥� said Michael Prince, Lansdowne professor of social policy at the University of Victoria.
鈥淏ut at this stage of the game you want to get your vote out and if this helps boost morale of your ground staff or people doing the phones for you, it鈥檚 one little extra thing to add to the conversation.鈥�
