Changes have been made to the Kelowna Lake Country riding for the 2015 federal election.
Image Credit: Shutterstock
September 17, 2015 - 1:05 PM
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - They almost got it right when they re-drew the federal electoral boundaries — nearly all of Kelowna votes together in the Kelowna-Lake Country riding except for one little lump of electoral boundary confusion that pushes downtown Kelowna into a different riding.
You've heard of Gracie's finger? We call this the Kelowna nipple.
No, we're not alleging gerrymandering like Grace McCarthy's famous 'finger' into friendly neighbourhoods, but that one little button on the end of the Central Okanagan-Similkameen-Nicola riding does look odd. And if you live in the area, you're going to want to know exactly where the nipple begins and ends before voting on Oct. 19.
Elections Canada re-drew boundaries to add 30 new federal ridings which has led to riding boundary changes all over the country, including Kelowna-Lake Country and its western neighbour. For some reason, a big chunk of downtown Kelowna — but not all of it — was shoved into the boundary for West Kelowna et al.
The boundary of this chunk of Kelowna runs along Highway 97 from the bridge to Dilworth Drive, down Dilworth to Springfield Road, along Springfield to Ziprick Road and then south on Ziprick to Mission Creek. From there, the boundary follows the creek back to Okanagan Lake.
Look at the riding map. What does it look like to you? Beyond that little oddity, it's essentially the same as the riding last won by incumbent Conservative MP Ron Cannan in 2011.
Kelowna-Lake Country is considered a safe seat for Cannan, where he faces challengers Norah Bowman of the NDP and Stephen Fuhr of the Liberal Party. The Green Party is not running a candidate in the riding.
Polling station locations will not be announced until Oct. 1. Advance polling is available Oct. 9 to 12. No advance registration is required to vote however registering beforehand will make for a speedier experience on voting day.
Riding map of Kelowna Lake Country, 2015.
Image Credit: Elections Canada
To contact the reporter for this story, email John McDonald at jmcdonald@infonews.ca or call 250-808-0143. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2015